


Bad Intentions

by Slynx



Series: Phoenix [3]
Category: Overwatch (Video Game)
Genre: Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Multi, Reaper | Gabriel Reyes has PTSD, Slow Burn, TW: Blood
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-26
Updated: 2020-07-16
Packaged: 2021-03-01 21:34:26
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 7
Words: 24,414
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23853901
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Slynx/pseuds/Slynx
Summary: The past has come back to haunt the Reaper in ways that have begun to twist into a previously unimaginable future. Outside influences have begun to take notice of Gabriel Reyes's re-emergence; is his mind really his own or does someone (or something) else hold the reins? Reyes must face himself- and one choice will change the course of his life forever.
Relationships: Reaper | Gabriel Reyes/Soldier: 76 | Jack Morrison
Series: Phoenix [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1553611
Comments: 53
Kudos: 91





	1. Chapter 1

"I'm taking you off missions for the foreseeable future."

Reaper glared, a muscle under one eye twitching with the effort to keep from exploding. Instead, the chair below him gave an ominous creak as both boots shoved into the barely-carpeted and well-worn conference room floor. _"What?"_

Winston sighed, fingers twining and releasing as his hands wrung. The debrief had ended only moments earlier, the scientist knowing he needed to address Reaper alone about the issue. He'd turned the problem over and over while the team had been on the way back, researching what he could find on former Commander Gabriel Reyes's history, both literal and medical, for an explanation…to no avail. "While in Gothenburg, you froze mid-mission. This resulted in Agent Morrison's injury and could have endangered the team if it had continued."

_Shit._

"Additionally, your own comment during the debrief insinuated that you did not know the freeze was about to occur. Correct me if I am wrong?"

Admitting weakness had been hard enough earlier. Re-admitting it was- "…You're…not wrong." Reaper ground out, looking away.

"Until we can find a way to halt the freezing, it would be irresponsible for me to allow you onto missions. It could put you and the team in incredible danger if the 'episode' were to occur at just the wrong moment." The hands stopped momentarily, a single finger raising to halt the progress of Winston's glasses down his nose and pushing the lenses back up into place. "Dr. Ziegler should be able to find a solution but we must give her time."

It was all annoyingly reasonable. The thought of being pulled from missions due to a medical condition irked him to the bone, but…yeah. Okay. Damnit. Reyes inhaled, counted to three, and released it. "Fine."

Thank goodness. Winston exhaled in relief. "You will still be permitted to participate in team training. Also, due to your actions on the mission, I'm expanding your base permissions so that you can access the armory, labs, and fabrication."

That would allow him everywhere except for the control room and communications tower. He needed both of those to send data out to Talon and establish a link for Sombra to be able to take over the systems, but at least he could work on recreating the armor he'd lost with the new permissions. Reaper considered the terms and finally nodded. Fine. He could work with this.

"Dr. Ziegler will be available to complete a preliminary physical in a few hours. For now, I'd recommend rest and perhaps a meal. I hear Torbjörn is making up some of his signature meatballs in the kitchen tonight." An awkward chuckle followed, Winston scratching behind one ear while looking towards the door. Having Reaper here was tenuous enough; attempting to create an allegiance and comradery with him felt nearly impossible. But…it was working. So far.

Pff. Swedish meatballs? Really? Reyes huffed and rose from his seat. "I'm assuming that was all you wished to discuss-?"

Er, right. "Yes. You're, uh, dismissed." This still felt so strange. Winston watched the Reaper leave without another word, the door sliding shut behind him. Yes, it could have gone better but it had also have gone much worse. Reaper was listening to him and had been a true asset during the mission, despite the freeze. He could only hope that is lasted.

\--

What the fuck.

WHAT the _FUCK_.

Reyes stormed back to the dormitories, slamming the door shut behind him. Damn it. How the hell was he going to explain these stupid episodes when he didn't know what was happening either?!

First, the armor was discarded on to the desk. Damn tight-ass straps. Reyes winced as he stretched, arms above his head, nanites shifting to remove the gnawing ache in his muscles. Yeah, he probably needed to eat…but first he needed answers.

One person might be able to help. Might. It had only been a day and a half but hell, she'd worked with more in less time before. Gauntlets removed and thrown onto the bed, Reyes switched frequencies on his comm. Look at him, he thought frustratedly, admitting weakness and asking for help. What a fucking disgrace. "Sombra. Do you read me?"

_**Not** a disgrace. You're improving._

The comm fizzled, then connected with a low hum. "Heeeeey!" Sombra sounded like she was grinning over the line. "He lives!"

"Progress report. Any update on that file?" Reaper shifted uncomfortably, finally sitting in on the bed beside his gauntlets.

"The- oh. THAT file." Click-clacking could be heard before a sigh echoed over the call. "Look, I've got good news and bad news."

Great. "Start with the bad news."

"I can't access the file because it isn't technically in Talon's systems. It's re-routed from the main file location in Oasis. To pull it in full, I'd need someone physically on location with some fancy gadgets to link me in."

Shit! Damn it, Moira. Reaper growled low. "Good news?"

"Yours truly pulled every part of the file accessible from Talon." 

A soft 'ping' lit the air once more as the datapad on his desk lit up. Reaper lunged for it, snagging the tablet and pulling up the file as soon as it fully downloaded. _Finally_ , he might have some answers.

"Hey Gabe?"

…Damnit. "What?" Reyes grumbled.

"I read the file."

Unsurprising. "And?"

"You're not gonna like it."

Also unsurprising.

"Look, just-" Sombra sighed, a slight shuffle sounding on the line as if she were adjusting her position. "I know you want to be keep this whole 'invincible lone wolf' image going here but you're not actually alone. You know that, right?"

What the fuck had she read in the file for her to say _that?_ Reyes made a face. "You've got to be kidding me."

"Maybe you could go say hi to Gruñón. I'm sure he'd be willing to lend an ear."

Was she trying to _tease_ him? Also, who the hell was- wait. Eyes rolled. "Jack is in the medical bay. He won't be lending anything anytime soon."

"What happened to Gruñón?!" Sombra almost sounded distraught. "What did you do?"

"Why does everyone assume _I_ did it?" First Ziegler, then Lindholm- even the debrief had tried to turn that direction.

"'Cuz you hate his guts."

"I _don't_ -" Reyes cut himself off, exhaling sharply. 

A low whistle echoed over the line. "You _don’t_ hate his guts?"

"No! I- _it's complicated._ Shut up." He hissed. 

…He could hear her eyebrows rising. 

Reyes sighed. "He'll be fine. Some omnics got lucky." This conversation was feeling too familiar. "How much do you want for this file?"

"Eh, you keep giving me information so we'll call it even." Her voice was…contemplative? No. That was disbelief and…something else. "I should have more intel on the file location in Oasis in a few days. Call back then and I'll tell you what I've found."

"Roger that. Signing off."

"Ahí nos vidrios."

Fuck. "Sombra."

"Eh?"

"…Thanks."

A shaky wheeze rattled the comm line. Then- "EEEEEEEEE! You never thank me! You never-"

"I'm leaving now." Reaper deadpanned, regretting it already.

"Aw, aren't you sweet!" Sombra cooed. "Okay, okay. Keep in touch, yeah?"

The line went dead.

\--

Sombra's odd note that he wasn't alone rang in the space behind his ears. As immature as she could be at times, it was uncharacteristic for her to be cautious with intel that should be fairly straightforward. What the hell had she found?

Reyes reluctantly moved to the desk and sat, the wooden chair digging into his back familiarly. One way to find out. Swiping up, the file appeared and opened on the tablet in small print. Red eyes squinted. Damn. Several dozen pages long and this wasn't even the full document? What was Moira keeping in Oasis?

Subject Name: Gabriel Reyes  
Project: Reaper

Project? Quickly, he flipped past the rest of the basic intel ( _blood type: AB Negative_ ). Nothing in the initial description showed a reference to the project once more or a reason for the episodes. Degenerative cell structure, nanite colony stabilization- blah blah blah…

Wait. What was this? Patient history? Reyes flicked it open and suddenly, another piece of the puzzle clicked into place. This Talon medical history didn't start after the Zurich explosion. The first entry was in May of 2060. Moira hadn't yet been recruited for Blackwatch, so how-

_'May 22, 2060: Observation began on the subject once new monitoring systems were installed within his base of operations. Subject is thus far unaware of observation.'_

_'May 30, 2060: Communication re-established with contacts within base of operations. Contacts began subliminal points of interest to test subject's mind and possibilities therein to influence his reactions.'_

The following entries detailed multiple audial and visual tests out of the range of normal human hearing and sight, horror growing within his bones as he realized what he was reading. 

Widowmaker hadn't been Talon's first test with brainwashing.

_'October 21, 2062: New contact established. Private monitoring confirmed on subject going forward. Resources successfully diverted to assist contact maintain connection.'_

The date felt familiar but he couldn't- he couldn't remember-

_'February 20, 2063: Subject successfully influenced to believe data given from contact.'_

_'April 24, 2065: Contact successfully extracted. Link established to continue communication with subject.'_

_'August 2, 2066: Dr. O'Deorain accepted into Blackwatch program.'_

_'August 6, 2066: First medical tests of subject established.'_

_'August 20, 2066: Test results show growth of cancer within subject's cells. Dr. O'Deorain assures that this will not change plans going forward.'_

Cancer? **Cancer?!** He'd been- but then why- 

Reyes tilted his head back, momentarily letting his eyes close. Inhale. Exhale.

Okay. Intake now. Process later.

_'March 2, 2067: First tests of genetic modification begin.'_

_'July 7, 2067: Subject shows further signs of degeneration. New techniques established.'_

_'November 6, 2067: Subject shows improvement.'_

_'December 15, 2067: Cancer halted. Cells showing regenerative properties and possible signs of programmability due to past SEP testing. Memory alteration tests have begun.'_

_'December 20, 2067: First successful emotional response test. Brain activity redirection successful.'_

_'January 4, 2068: First successful memory test.'_

_'March 5, 2068: First successful field test.'_

_'March 8, 2068: Dr. O'Deorain removed from Blackwatch. Link established to continue communication with subject.'_

The words began to blur, the tablet shaking. It took a few moments for Reyes to realize his own hands were betraying him, tremors wracking him to the bone. Breathe. Breathe, damnit!

Maybe if he just skipped forward-

_'July 3, 2070: Subject directed to eliminate Overwatch Strike Commander before base cleansing. Subject found deceased in wreckage and retrieved. Directive failed.'_

_'July 4, 2070: Subject resurrection failed. Nanite colony injected to replicate cell regeneration. Resurrection successful. Subject kept in P.O.D. for further observation.'_

_'July 7, 2070: Subject body deteriorating. Nanite primary function programmed to regeneration to counteract cell degeneration.'_

_'July 20, 2070: Implants successfully installed. Nerve structure successfully re-established along spine.'_

_'July 21, 2070: Full memory re-programming initiated.'_

_'August 14, 2070: Full memory re-programming completed.'_

_'November 2, 2070: Project Reaper success. Full re-integration into Talon established. Memory re-programming failure noted: statistical data and intel wiped from subject's mind and may not be retrievable.'_

Memory wipe. Nanite- stabilization-

The tablet clattered to the wooden desktop, hyperventilated breathing filling the air as Reaper fought his way out of the chair and fell to the floor, fingers clawing at the floor as his vision swam. He- he'd been- 

He'd been _fucking brainwashed!!_

A blank slate. That's what O'Deorain had said in that episode, right? A fucking blank slate, a malleable gun for hire that Talon could point at whatever they pleased-

Was anything real? The list ( _another off the list_ ), his deathwish against Overwatch (he wanted Jack _alive_ ), the episodes-

None of the actual medical data was there in the file, only summaries and minor lab notes that read like a mad scientist's diary ( _and really, wasn't that exactly what this was?_ ). That all had to be in the file at Oasis. That had to be what Moira was hiding away.

Red eyes flicked up, breathing evening as he fought against sudden nausea, the door before him beginning to swim out of focus. He needed to get to Oasis. To get there, he needed to get put back on the missions. To do that, Ziegler needed to fix him. 

What else was out there that Talon had locked away or just fucking erased? Who the hell was the Iris? Why could Jack use his gauntlets? Why were some of these episodes so damn paralyzing and the others barely a subconscious thought? And why ( _WHY_ ) was this all happening now? How had he been snapped out of the leash Talon had apparently kept him on for the better part of two decades?

Two DECADES.

Gabriel's breathing sped up again, fingers digging into the metal below the carpeted floor. He- he needed-

_"Maybe you could go say hi to Gruñón. I'm sure he'd be willing to lend an ear."_

Jack. JACK. The singular thought became his main focus, form shimmering momentarily before blinking out of existence in the room-

-and reappearing in the medical ward, still on the floor with pieces of carpeting around his fingers.

\--

"MEIN GOTT!" Angela Ziegler darted backwards, hand clutched to her chest. Would she ever get used to this occurring?! Reaper was on all fours on the floor, having appeared out of thin air-

No. Not Reaper. Reyes.

…The man wasn't moving. Not like before. Angela cautiously edged around Reyes, keeping her motions slow as she crouched in front of him. Breath was shallow and fast, body tensed. "Reyes?"

It took a moment for him to look up. When he finally did, Angela had to fight to hold in her gasp. Reyes's pupils were blown wide, his form trembling more by the moment.

"Jack." His lips barely moved. "Jack."

Angela's gaze darted up to a bed two down the line. Jack Morrison was still unconscious but finally stable, resting peacefully for the first time she'd seen since…well, ever. But if there was one thing she'd come to realize over the years, it was that the former Strike Commander would be quite a bit less peaceful should he wake and come to find out he could have made a difference in a critical situation. As much as it went against medical protocol…no. She knew what to do.

"He's over here." A hand extended down to the man below. "Come. This way."

Wordlessly and without pause, a scarred hand raised and gripped hers. Angela filed away her surprise for another time, instead carefully leading Reyes towards Morrison's bed as he crawled across the floor. He did not seem to be in physical pain and yet-

"Athena." Angela blinked as the name croaked from Reyes just as they reached the bedside. "Athena, transfer last received file to Dr. Ziegler."

_'Affirmative. File transferred._

What file? She made to ask, but was left mute when the hand left hers and Reyes lunged upwards. At first, panic rose within Angela, hand moving automatically towards the pistol that now kept her hip constant company, but…no. He wasn't attacking. He was…hunched over Morrison's form, back shaking as odd sounds echoed-

Reyes was _crying_.

A hand rose to Angela's mouth in shock, the doctor slowly backing away. She didn't dare intrude. What on earth could have caused such a reaction? 

The door to her office slid shut behind her, screen blinking with '1 New Notification: File Transfer Complete'. The doctor's eyes narrowed as she motioned for it to open, the document opening easily. 

Subject Name: Gabriel Reyes  
Project: Reaper

Mein Gott. Was this his Talon medical file? How had he managed to retrieve such data? She scrolled down, digesting the notes-

Lungs stuttered.

What?

No. This couldn't actually be what she'd-

Angela scrolled further down, horror growing as she began to realize what she was reading.

They had-

…No wonder. No _wonder._

Angela's eyes narrowed to slits, determination overtaking revulsion. She'd go through this document word by word if she had to. She could fix this…and she would.

\--

Sunlight forced his eyelids to twitch, mouth twisting in a groan as consciousness pulled at him. There had been a dream that he'd actually enjoyed for once with tall cornstalks and a warm, familiar smile with hazel eyes-

His back felt better than it had in ages. Slowly, he let the sunlight in, blinking back the light as his surroundings filtered in. Medbay again? Right. The mission. The omnics. Soft, syrupy sobs pressed into his right side, the sheets damp-

…What?

Jack blinked again. A figure was bent over the bed in what had to be an extraordinarily uncomfortable position, both hands wrapped around Jack's own and a beanie-covered head-

Beanie?

"Gabe?" His throat was dry but still felt better than it had in a lifetime. The figure quieted but didn't move from its spot, still huddled over him. Jack squeezed his hand a few times, still not fully processing the situation. It wasn't until the head raised, eyes swollen and face wet, that he realized what he was seeing.

"Shit! Gabe, what happened?" He reached out, intending to pull his old friend closer- but hesitated. Gabriel probably didn't want that. They'd barely moved into small talk territory-

"-oOf-" Jack found his arms full of super soldier, head tucked under his. Gabriel was hugging him. _Hugging_ him- and crying. Automatically, he pushed himself up, pulling Gabriel with him (agh- back was still being stubborn) and wrapping him in an embrace, one hand cupping the back of the familiar head and sinking into the short curls under the beanie. "Hey. Hey, what's wrong?"

The head under his shook side to side almost violently, cheek knocking against Jack's collarbone. Hm. Didn't want to talk, huh? The former strike commander exhaled, pulling Gabriel in tighter and almost up into his lap. They were back at Gibraltar, the mission clearly a success…this couldn't have anything to do with all that. He'd need to wait until Gabe had calmed enough to tell him, which…would take time. But that was okay, Jack thought silently, other hand rubbing circles into the shaking back. He was a patient man. When it came to Gabe, he was willing to wait for as long as it took.

They'd figure this out together.

"I'm here." Jack murmured, leaning back into the bed and wordlessly urging the other to follow him, Gabriel following the motions as if they'd been spoken aloud and curling up on the bed beside him. They pressed together, warmth on warmth. God, it felt good.

What the hell could have made him so upset? And why…why had Gabriel come to him? Not that he was complaining- far from it- but this was uncharacteristic of the man to say the least. Well, uncharacteristic of the Reaper. The Gabriel of the past wouldn't have hesitated-

"Jack." Lips muttered against his skin, chin digging slightly into one pec. 

"Yeah?" Had it been a question or…?

…Another soft sob followed, the kind that spoke of swollen throat and aching eyes. Jack leaned his head down to rest on top of the beanie, eyes closing.

"I've got you, Gabe."


	2. Chapter 2

Dreamless sleep had its perks. The crick in his neck was not one of them.

Gabriel grumbled, beanie half-obscuring his vision as he sank back against warmth, the bed near-radiating heat. He nuzzled into the pillow, humming contently as fingers sleepily trailed through his hair, and let his eyelids slip back shut.

…Wait.

Gabe's eyes snapped back open. The 'pillow' shifted below him in a steady rise and fall of breath, scars littering weathered skin and, farther up, a mop of thinning white hair on a familiar, war-torn face. 

He was cuddling with Jack fucking Morrison.

Okay- breathe. No, he needed to stop hyperventilating. Step one: determine location and situation without alerting possible hostiles. Audial intel suggested the medbay. Jack had been here recovering from the lucky shot from the omnics. He was here because- he'd- 

_'Project Reaper success. Full re-integration into Talon established. Memory-'_

Fuck. _That._

Reyes winced, knowing step two ( _recount what facts he knew to be true_ ) wouldn't help in the slightest but followed through anyway. He had…panicked and found his way here. Morrison had woken and assisted without question. They'd…fallen asleep? What time was it?

The light level in the room suggested early morning. That couldn't be right.

Damnit, how weak _WAS_ he to have come crawling to Jack for help?

_Asking for help isn't weak._

Gabriel growled, shifting against his former friend uncomfortably. That was the real issue, wasn't it? This was….comfortable. Too comfortable. He liked it too much, he realized in alarm, down to the soft, soothing thump of Jack's heartbeat through his chest. 

It was absolutely time to go.

This was, of course, the exact fucking moment Jack decided to wake up.

\--

His right arm was numb. Nose crinkling as his mouth twisted, Jack woke slowly and pulled Gabriel in closer. His old friend was still so close, arm still slung over Jack's hips and eyes skittering up in alarm.

…Uh.

Jack blinked. Eyes locked, a wordless stand-off that neither seemed interested in breaking. God, Gabe was close. The swelling in the red eyes had gone down at least, he found himself noting despite the awkwardness of the situation. There was a frozen quality that lingered as if Reyes had been caught in the act of something, though Jack had no idea what on earth he could have interrupted.

"You okay?"

Perhaps it was a poor choice of words. Gabriel immediately dropped the eye contact to stare resolutely at the lit window to their left. Jack near-winced. Yeah. Great start.

"You…wanna talk about it?"

A huffed almost-laugh came from Reyes, so soft that Jack almost only felt it through the vibrations where their chests were still pressed together. Yeah, that was a no.

"Sourpuss." Jack grumbled without heat, fingers twitching and tingling in their place through Gabe's hair, just barely registering the feel of the salt and pepper curls before easing back. He unwrapped his arm from around Gabriel to reach up and pull the beanie back into place, correcting the skewed position, and felt a smile pull at his mouth when a splotched and calloused hand swatted at him for the adjustment. Sourpuss indeed. "Up n' at 'em, sleeping beauty. You're crushing my arm."

"Back off, _Prince Charming_ , or I'll crush your other one too." Gabriel snarked back hoarsely. Figured that his first words of the day would be something along those lines. Jack snickered, shoving at him.

"Oh good. You're both awake."

That…wasn't Gabe's voice. Blues blinked again, neck arching to peer up and around as Angela Ziegler strode into view, the door of her office snapping shut behind her. Dark circles ringed her eyes, a cup of coffee just slightly trembling in one hand. Had she slept since the mission? Jack pulled himself up to a sitting position, Gabriel's suddenly frozen form beside him dissipating to smoke and reforming beside the bed, upright and with arms crossed tightly across a hoodie-covered chest. 

"You must have needed the rest- you've been asleep for nearly ten hours." Angela tiredly halted a few feet from the end of the bed, a sip of coffee punctuating her arrival. "You're both free to go. No unnecessary strenuous activities for the next twenty-four hours, either of you. Reyes, I'm moving your physical to tomorrow morning before group training. I need further time to analyze the data you brought me."

Eyes narrowed as Jack watched Gabriel's form tense despite the approving nod, the man near-shrinking into himself. That data had to be at least part of the reason for the reaction from earlier, he reasoned.

"Jack, you shouldn't have any further difficulties with your injuries but let me know if anything feels out of place." Pulling a tablet from her lab coat, Angela swiped something across the screen as if marking something off a list. "Reyes, same. Your nanites appear to have reintegrated fully into your system, per the scan I took a few hours ago."

Again, just another nod from Reyes. Jack grimaced. Gabriel seemed almost…embarrassed? …Yeah, okay. That sounded like him. Waking up in the medbay was never really a fun experience, honestly, and given how distraught Gabe had been earlier…if Angela had seen that…

The former strike commander pulled the sheets off and swung his legs out of bed, stretching. Damn. Ziegler was right. The pain was minimal. It was…well, gone.

…How was that possible? Hadn't the shot traumatized the previous wound? Wasn't that why he'd had to recover in the medbay for so long? Jack stood, pulling idly at the edge of his briefs before running his hands along his bandaged side. Ziegler was there almost before he could blink, scissors in hand that quickly gnawed the white material and packing from the wound.

As Angela discarded the bandages, Jack stared down in awe. What? Scars had already faded into his skin, the stitches finally loosed and the blackened skin completely missing. "How did you- did opening it back up help it to heal?" Maybe the shot had knocked something loose.

"You'll have to ask Reyes. He pulled a whole nanite colony out of there, if I understood him correctly." The doctor made a shooing motion with her free hand, the other preoccupied with tilting the coffee cup up to her lips once more. "Your clothes are in the bedside drawer, Morrison. Now, both of you- out." She managed to stumble back into her office, a muffled gurgling of newly brewed coffee cut short as her door snapped back shut.

Gabriel had- what? Running a hand through his hair, Jack twisted from side to side, testing the area. Beyond the ache of inactivity, the pain was virtually nonexistent. "Thanks, sleeping beauty." He teased, not quite making eye contact as he grabbed for his pants. 

An incomprehensible mutter followed, an eyebrow arching as Jack pulled on his compression shirt. "Hm?"

A huff responded. Finally, after another moment, audible words emerged. "It was my damn nanites that caused the problem so I fixed it."

His earlier suspicions melted into a puddle as Gabriel shifted uncomfortably on the other side of the bed, clothes still rumpled from sleep and fingers tapping in a nervous tic on the top of one arm. That...was his Gabe. It was like the other man that had lived within his skin was now in the back seat instead of vice versa, his former best friend just as grumpy and adorable as he'd been a decade prior. Fondness surged in Jack's chest that he quickly tamped down. 

"Yeah, well my back and I are thankful you did." His armor and visor were apparently somewhere else. Jack pulled the double set of dogtags back over his head and tucked the chain under his shirt, boots by the bedside locking into place with a dull click. There. God, he felt better than he had in _ages_. He turned to Reyes, motioning with his head towards the door. "Breakfast?"

Gabriel opened his mouth indignantly but was beaten to the punch by a roiling snarl echoing up from his stomach. The jaw snapped shut, the mismatched skin about his cheekbones flushing. _Cute._ Jack's lips twitched to keep from smiling. He'd take that as a yes.

\--

For the second time, the cafeteria was deserted as they made their way inside. A bitter relief, as he didn't really feel like interacting with anyone. Speaking of which- Gabriel's teeth ground as he followed Morrison into the kitchen. This new familiarity scraped at him like continuous rug burn. But when he'd woken beside Jack, a warmth had bloomed in his chest that had yet to fade. It…the comradery felt natural. He…

He liked it.

Gabriel swallowed. Ahead of him, Jack had the refrigerator door open. Reyes carefully leaned in next to him, their shoulders brushing.

"You know," a thumb jabbed at the saran-wrapped tray of meatballs, an absolutely mischievous look coming over Jack's face that de-aged his features by three decades. "I bet they have tots in the freezer. How badly would Torb skin us for using his meatballs in a hot dish?"

"Oh my god, Morrison." A tater tot hot dish? With Lindholm's prized meatballs-?

"Oh come on. It's what, ground beef and onions?" The grin grew. "I bet I could make it work."

"No. Not everything is meant to be put in a casserole, you freak of nature." Gabe's eyes rolled, but a snigger burbled up out his chest without it meaning to, the insult holding no heat whatsoever.

Oddly, it was if the knowledge of knowing what Talon had done had jarred something loose. He'd locked _those_ particular nuggets away to analyze further when he was alone again. No, he was not disassociating. SHUT UP. But...it no longer felt like a struggle to interact with the other super soldier, despite not fully understanding the closeness. The motions were familiar and required little thought, Gabriel nudging the shoulder beside his own before he could think better of it. "Check the pantry. I might have an idea."

\--

"Lindholm is still going to skin us." Jack scooped up a second portion of the mix, expertly wrapping it and stuffing the burrito into his mouth.

"Yeah, he can try."

For not having cooked in nearly a decade (and given the available ingredients), the scramble had turned out remarkably well. His hands had worked on autopilot, adjusting heat and dicing as if he'd done it a hundred times before despite the lack of tangible memory. With Jack's contributions (shredded cheese, a third of the meatballs, and some tortillas and canned beans he'd found in the pantry), eggs and fresh onions, and some quickly-concocted salsa from what was left in the fridge, the burritos weren't half bad. Yeah, the cheese was burnt in a few places but that gave the meal texture, damnit. Gabriel glared over at the freezer as he took another bite, salsa dribbling down the back of his hand. "I can't believe they have _frozen guacamole_." Even without the memory of how the real thing tasted, he had felt a piece of his soul recoil at the sight of the frosty miniature neon-green cups stacked in the ice box. "Fucking _blasphemy_."

"Some things never change." A third burrito miraculously disappeared.

"Yeah, like your appetite." Gabriel pulled the pan away from the hand that reached for fourths, snorting at the mock-wounded look on Jack's face. "And your ineffective puppy-dog eyes."

"Worth a shot." Chair scraping across the floor, the former strike commander stretched again, savoring the easy pull of his muscles. Stomach full, well-rested, free of pain…and Gabriel at his side? Damn. Now _this_ was a good morning. Jack rolled up his sleeves and moved to the sink to work on the dishes, looking back to wink at the man still at the table with a smirk. "I just didn't think you wanted to eat too many of Torbjörn's balls."

Gabriel choked, hacking roughly with wide eyes, and stared down at the burrito once he had his airway free. …Slowly, he pushed the pan back Jack's way. "You know, I think I've lost my appetite."

"Pfff-"

_'Attention all personnel: agents Echo and Genji have returned to base with candidate Zenyatta. Please welcome them in your own time.'_

Both super soldiers froze, staring at each other as their mouths moved in unison.

_"Echo?"_


	3. Chapter 3

_Feet thundered over the wreckage, McCree at his side as they both cleared the area and frantically searched for survivors. Debris after debris was overturned, the skin of his hands soon bleeding freely, but he refused to stop until they found-_

_'DOC!'_

_Time slowed as Gabriel Reyes turned, pupils dilating. A cowboy hat rolled across a piece of downed ceiling before settling, upturned. McCree pulled a limp form from the ruins of the lab, his second-in-command shaking and bent over the form in grief. The bloodied top half of a head came into view and it was all Gabriel could do to keep from screaming._

_MINA- no- no no no-_

_This was all his fault._

"-Gabe?"

Reyes jolted, the remains of the last burrito pooled on the table below from his limp hand. Swallowing, he attempted to remain nonchalant. Damn these episodes.

"What?"

…Since when had Jack finished the dishes? How long had he been under this time? A pointed look his way sent Gabriel's eyes darting in the opposite direction as he snagged a paper towel and began cleaning the rest of the burrito away. The silence stretched even as he finished, sending Reyes's hackles up. "WHAT."

Jack Morrison sighed and leaned back against the kitchen counter, hands bracing against the tile. "You coming with me to see Echo or do you want to do that on your own?" Gabe had shut down moments after the announcement just as he had during the mission. Unlike before, it didn't seem quite right to knock Gabriel's head with something hard…though watching his friend twitch and stare into nothingness while food spilled on the table wasn't a great alternative either.

A sharp, frustrated shrug punctuated the silence without words. Jack's mouth twisted, watching as his old friend rose and tossed the debris before moving to stand next to him. What was going on in that head of his? A jerk of a head towards the door at least determined their next course of action. All right- together then.

Gabriel was tense, fists at his side as they walked towards the landing strip of the dropship. The imprints of sleep still lingered in the folds of his hoodie, Jack's mind supplied as he tried to ascertain what was happening without asking. There didn't seem to be a physical reason for the freeze-shift, no injury to set it off- but hell, Gabe was still hurting. It was written in every step closer they took to seeing the three arrivals.

Without thinking much of it, Jack reached out and wrapped a hand around one of Gabriel's fists, thumb smoothing over the back of the wrist soothingly. _I'm here if you need me,_ he tried to convey silently. _I'm here._

Quite a bit of mental strength and willpower went into not immediately wrenching away from the physical contact, Reyes looking away as the underside of his eye twitched rapidly. What the hell did Morrison think he was doing? He didn't need someone to fucking _hold his hand_. He wanted to punch something, not-

The slide of the thumb on skin sent a shudder of electricity down his spine, his shoulder losing a bit of their tension. …What…? Fingers eased open his fist little by little, the two still walking without acknowledging the shift, and a hand found its way against his palm. It felt less _wrong_ than he'd expected, Gabriel observed with a mental wince, hand closing back around Morrison's after a moment despite reservations, and it…wasn't unsatisfactory. Just as back in the medical ward, the gesture was so comfortable that it felt unnatural.

Gabe was refusing to make eye contact with him, but the weight of the hand in his was plenty. Jack squeezed it once again, reveling quietly in the sensation. Years ago, this would have felt much more awkward and almost taboo. Now, the familiarity settled over them both like a weighted blanket. It was more progress than Jack could have possibly asked for over the course of the past few days-

A glint of blue caught their attention, both heads snapping to the side as they realized just who had come into view.

In front, silver glinted off two metallic bodies. One, sword sheathed on the back as green lights pulsed beneath, was remarkably familiar. The other, dressed only in dark yellow pants with various crimson accessories, was not. It was the third figure, though, that caused both sets of super-soldier lungs to halt function, hands clenching around each other simultaneously.

Echo had always been an incredible reflection of her creator, but time had erased the intricate details of the robot's alien beauty from both sets of memory. The ivory form floated inches from the ground, light blue flowing easily between and within limbs, gathering at fingertips and stretching across a face they both knew well.

Jack swallowed. _Shit._

Memories swirled behind Gabriel's eyelids, the former Blackwatch Commander forcing his eyes to stay open to keep the episode at bay that grew closer as the arrivals approached them. Breathe. _Breathe, damnit!_

A moment later, the five faced each other. Zenyatta (the newcomer, surely) seemed to eye them curiously, though his face revealed nothing. Genji regarded them warily, hesitating before beginning a perfunctory bow of greeting-

"Strike Commander." Everyone froze. "Commander Reyes." The holographic face smiled brightly. "Oh my. Neither of you have aged gracefully, have you?"

Genji sputtered. Zenyatta bowed his head slightly, as if hiding a laugh. Jack stared, jaw ajar.

Gabriel, for his credit, forgot himself completely and busted out into laughter so hard that he had to let go of Jack's hand, hugging his sides as he wheezed. Oh god. Oh. That hurt.

Soon, he heard Jack's sniggers join in and even a soft chuckle from Genji. It wasn't until his eyes began to feel wet that Gabriel forced himself to quiet, an arm quickly scrubbing at his face. What the hell was with him? His emotions were insane these days, as if they'd woken from a nap after several years asleep. A hand squeezed his upper arm, Reyes startled to find Echo's face just before his own. 

_Mina had squeezed his arm like that too. Before-_

He didn't even know who Mina was.

_Yes, you do._

Dr. Mina Liao, an expert in robotics and artificial intelligence-

_"Gabriel, we will be fine. Why would Talon target us?" A warm smile graced her lips, waving him off without concern. "I know you would not take Jesse if it was not of utmost concern."_

_"I'll have him back to you in one piece in no time at all, doc."_

_"I'm sure you will. Be safe out there for once, will you?" Mina winked. "I know you boys like getting yourself in trouble."_

_"Trouble finds us, doc." McCree jangled his way into view, tipping his hat her way cordially even as the cigar in his teeth hid the fond look he sent her way. "But we'll keep an eye out."_

_"I'll hold you both to that."_

_Flames, screaming, Mina- MINA- fuck, no! Not- please. Not her too._

Gabriel resurfaced with a gasp, hands pressing at both sides of his head. Muffled words poked at his mind, but the only thing he could focus on was needing space. He needed- space. His body shot off in a stream of smoke, headed for _up_ and _away_ as if on autopilot.

Swearing, Jack watched the rest of Gabriel's form disappear from view. Two freezes in a row? That couldn't be good.  
"It's good to see you, Genji. Zenyatta, hoping we can meet formally later. Echo-"

"It is all right, Strike Commander." Blue flared beneath elegant feet. "I will return momentarily. We can catch up at that time, yes?" 

Wait- she was leaving too? Jack watched as Echo took off in the direction Gabriel had disappeared towards. She…knew where he'd gone. Without another word, he took off in a sprint, following her from the ground. 

"…Well." Genji cleared his throat awkwardly. "That was…enlightening." Both commanders had certainly changed since their last encounters.

Zenyatta hummed quietly. The look upon the former Commander Reyes's face had spoken of deep pain, so fresh that one could not help but wonder how recently it had been inflicted or brought to the surface. In this case, it looked to be a case of both. He had seen it before in a certain student by his side. "The path to enlightenment has never been an easy one." Perhaps, in time, the Commander could find his peace as Genji had found his.

\--

When he came to himself again, Gabriel realized he was above one of the training center modules. Back pressed to the concrete, he let himself spread-eagle on the ground and try to re-center.

Breathe in.

Breathe out.

Another episode. Another fucking episode-

No.

Just breathe. He'd figure that out when he had time to-

"Hey there."

Reyes jolted upwards as Echo touched down, though…touching down didn't quite seem right as her feet never even touched the ground. A sudden flash of resentment spiked through him, Gabriel rising to his feet and turning away. He didn't want this right now. He wanted to be left _alone_. What part of that was she not getting? Wasn't she supposed to be able to know this shit?

"You are affected by a condition akin to post-traumatic stress disorder. I apologize if I might have set it off." Echo did not draw any closer, knowing instinctively that coming any closer to the man might be more harmful than helpful.

…What? He scoffed. PTSD. Yeah right.

"You-" oh. That was new. Jesse's metal arm had surely been a shock, as had seeing both the Strike Commander and Commander Reyes alive (the news of Zurich and its aftermath had been so upsetting that she had needed to process for several long moments before continuing to read the news article about it), but the buzzing, swirling mass of nanites within the Commander's body was perhaps most surprising of all. They sang out a greeting even as the man stayed quiet, Echo tilting her head curiously. Most odd of all, the nanites appeared to be registering on a different level than the man's consciousness. Something else was there that her scan was picking up. Something…big. "-have robotics within you now." Yet another scan revealed another shocking truth. "They are keeping you alive."

Reyes flinched. 

_Nanite colony injected to replicate cell regeneration._

"Yeah." Hissing, his shoulders tensed up as Gabriel glared out over the training center. "What of it."

"They speak to you. Are they relaying from a communications array?"

WHAT. He whirled around, glare turning to an incredulous stare. "What the hell are you talking about?"

Echo gestured to him. "The nanites."

No. No, that couldn't be. Was Talon trying to control him from afar? Was that why it wasn't in the medical file? Were they watching everything through his eyes? Could they-

A hand squeezed his upper arm again. It was only then that Gabriel realized he was hyperventilating again.

"I am so sorry! I did not mean to upset you." Echo patted the arm before letting go. "I also did not realize that perhaps you could not hear them. They are so clear to me."

Clear? "You can hear my nanites?" Gabriel's voice felt raspy. Could he not have one day go by without another realization that broke his brain to pieces?

"Yes." The chorus of sound rose when she tuned into it, Echo smiling as it washed over her. "They have only the best intentions. They speak of healing shattered mind and body."

…No Talon then. Thank god. Gabe let out a shaky breath of relief.

"There is something else there-"

NO.

"-but it too only appears to have the best intentions." 

…This was worse than a damn roller coaster.

Echo's head tilted. "Has nothing tried communicating with you recently? I am surprised they have not tried talking to you directly."

"Not unless you count these damn episodes." It felt damning to say it out loud. Gabriel walked to the edge of the module, looking out across the training center and to the glittering waters beyond. Could he not just have a moment to figure this out himself? 

_You haven't been trying to figure it out. You've been blocking it all in hopes that it will someday go away on its own._

"Zenyatta may be able to help you center yourself and even communicate with the nanites." Echo dared to float a bit closer, shoulder almost touching the Commander's own. "I have heard of nanites used in healing before but I have never heard of sentience coming upon them. However, Zenyatta's specialties lie in inner healing. If anyone could guide you, it is him."

"Don't suppose you could just tell me and we could forget this entire situation?" Gabriel dead-panned, looking over at the familiar blue face.

_MINA- no- no no no-_

_This was all his fault._

"Haaaah-" he reeled back, hands back on the sides of his head. What the hell was wrong with him?

Echo carefully floated herself backwards, realizing that seeing her was part of the reason Reyes was having trouble maintaining control. "I remind you of her, don't I." When no answer came, she chanced continuing. "No one blamed you for her death, you know. Talon claimed all responsibility."

_**This was all his fault.** _

"I-" Gabriel's teeth gritted, memories flashing as if on a reel in his head. "It-"

A soft grunting caught Echo's attention, the white armor glinting as she peered forward and over the opposite side of the module. Oh! "Good timing, Strike Commander."

One scarred hand appeared, then another. Jack levered himself up and rolled onto the top of the squared-off area, catching his breath before getting to his feet. He'd correct the title later. "Sitrep, Echo."

Ah- now that was something she could help with. "Commander Reyes is suffering from post-traumatic-stress-disorder-esque episodes that may be spurred from an inability to communicate with the nanite colony living within his bloodstream. The-"

"I'm not a damn science project." Gabriel hissed, still leaned forward as he tried to hold back the memories. "Cut it out."

Echo hesitated before continuing, voice a bit quieter. "My appearance also appears to be negatively affecting him. I believe it might have something to do with Dr. Liao's dea-"

"SOMETHING?"

Jack found himself taken aback as manic laughter tumbled out of Gabriel. The beanie fell from his head as both hands gripped at salt-and-pepper hair and _pulled_.

"I killed her." Reyes hissed. "I fucking- I killed her."

"You did not." Jack stepped forward, eyes narrowed. "Her laboratory was considered low-risk. We both agreed-"

"Her safety was my responsibility." Angry, grief-stricken eyes locked on his. "I fucking KILLED her, Jack. They came for her and she never even had a fucking chance." Hands pulled tighter in the curls, fists white-knuckled. "First Amelie, then Gerard, then her, then Ana-"

"Hey." He was spiraling. Jack carefully moved forward, feet moving cautiously as if stepping from rock to rock across a fast-running creek, and eased his way into Gabriel's space. "Hey. You just said it yourself. Talon did that, not you." 

Another manic laugh. It was all coming together. "Yeah, and it's because of me that they got to them."

Jack's hand wavered above Gabriel's shoulder, frozen in shock. "…What?"

"They got in my head almost two decades ago. Used me for intel and I didn't even- I didn't even know-" Gabriel's breath came faster. "I probably told them she was alone and don't even remember it."

"What the hell are you talking about?" An image of Gabe's blank face from the day of the Zurich explosion flashed up to Jack's mind, filling the former Strike Commander with dread.

"Had my memories all fucked up- subliminal messaging and- and, _shit-_ " Gabriel's voice broke, the man dropping to his knees, his head bowing nearly to the ground. "It's my fault. _It's all my fault._ "

Silence fell over the module. Jack took a step backwards, then two. Talon had been experimenting on Gabriel even before-

It made sense. The leaked intel, the failed missions, even Rialto's disaster…it made sense.

…Too much sense.

"You didn't know they did it, did you." Jack quietly asked. A soft, choked breath was answer enough.

A shadow crossed in front of the module, Echo's ivory form hovering just in front of the Commander's hunched form. Both of her hands reached out, placing themselves on each of his fisted, scarred hands and closing around them. "She wouldn't blame you for that. She would forgive you and wish nothing more than to help you to forgive yourself."

"That's not- didn't you hear me?!" Gabriel yanked his hands away, staring straight up into the blue face in half-rage, half-sorrow, still not fully understanding why the depth of this death hit him so hard but unable to pull himself out of the spiral of his despair. "It's _my fault they-"_

"Did you knowingly give the information?"

"What-" Gabriel spat, near-yelling. "Of course I didn’t-!"

"Then it is not your fault. What people choose to do with information is fully within their own control, especially if they gained their intelligence through deceitful means." Echo moved to sit beside him, her wings curling underneath her and hand lowering to rhythmically smooth up and down his back. "You only found out recently that Talon controlled you, did you not? That must have been incredibly difficult." The pain was fresh, as if he were attempting to heal from a wound that torn into his heart. The nanites buzzed anxiously, frustrated that they could not locate the source of the pain to repair it. 

…Jack slid into place on his other side. The pieces were slowly coming into place. He wanted to ask Gabriel whether or not Talon still had a clawed grip on his brain, but the pained look the man currently was sending out over the training arena stalled the questions in his throat. He slid his hand into Gabriel's, squeezing experimentally and feeling relief spread as the other hand cautiously squeezed back. _I'm here._

They sat along the module edge for nearly an hour. Sunlight began licking at their heels as it slid into a perfect angle, beaming into the training arena as the sound of the waves eased the atmosphere into something nearly-breathable again. Knowing didn't make it easier to process, Jack reasoned as he watched sunlight glint off of a nearby target, pieces swinging gently in a mid-morning breeze. He couldn't imagine what Gabriel had to be going through right now. At least he hadn't taken off again.

_Weak. WEAK!_

_How could you!_

_It wasn't your fault. Echo's right. It wasn't your fault. How could it be?_

_You're letting them see you like this! How could you let them see you like this-_

The closeness and the physical contact slowly quieted the voices echoing in his head to a dull roar. As minutes ticked by, he found himself sitting up, eyes blank. They all seemed to breath together, even Echo-

How long had they been out here? Gabriel winced as he attempted to shift. Shit. "Damn knees." Teeth gritted, he managed to get his legs underneath him and into a cross-legged position. _How long_ had they been out here? 

_Weak. How could you let them see you like-_

_**SHUT UP.** _

Slowly, he began to pull himself to his feet. Jack stayed by his side, using their joined hands as a way to help lever him up, Echo assisting gently from the other side. Was this…what it meant to have a support system? Gabriel's eyes shifted away. He shouldn't need help-

_You're not weak for accepting help._

"It's…" he chewed the words, trying to find the best way to say them. "…good to see you again, Echo." Despite everything, Gabriel meant it. Mina had always meant Echo to be a beacon of hope in dark times. As in times before, Mina had succeeded in the best of ways. 

Out of the corner of his eye, he spotted something odd. Gabriel's neck ached as it turned, eyes widening as he spotted the holographic butterfly floating above Echo's palm. She looked at it almost quizzically.

"Is this emotional growth?"

Jack made an ugly snorting sound that Gabriel echoed moments later. "I regret letting McCree teach you about memes." Reyes spoke as he remembered, a smile tugging at the corners of his lips despite the numbness he hadn't yet completely shaken.

"Sarcasm detected." Echo deadpanned before giggling. "As Jesse would say, 'Honey Badger don't give a shit.'"

"Oh my god." Jack wheezed. "Do you even know what that means?"

"Affirmative!"

"Honey badger don't- god, that was before I was even born." His breath quickened as if he were about to laugh, but Gabriel instead shook his head. He felt drained, as if the energy to process things emotionally had begun to spill out. Honestly, it was a relieving feeling.

"Yeah, but you're old so that doesn't count." Jack elbowed him. They needed to talk soon but it could wait. Damn, there was a lot to take in from this morning alone. For now, it was enough to see his old friend back up on his feet and talking. The last thing Gabriel needed right now was a taste of the screaming currently going on in Jack's own head at the thought that he had missed the signs of his friend getting brainwashed by Talon under his own nose, what it meant going forward, how it might still be affecting Gabe-  
"When were you born anyway? I mean, Noah got you on the boat right?"

Well, there went the numb feeling. Reyes growled indignantly even as the humor ate his defenses. "We're nearly the same age, asshole."

"But you were still around for TikTok, I believe." Shoulders rubbed and hands squeezed. "That died before I came around."

"Keep it up, Jack-ass, and I'll start in on how much older you look than me." Gabriel squeezed back, finally making eye contact. 

"You wouldn't dare!"

\--

Echo set the Strike Commander (former, he'd informed her on the flight) in front of the cafeteria, Commander Reyes appearing beside them in a flurry of smoke. Hopefully, he would check in with Zenyatta. Dr. Liao had always said that both the Commanders valued their friends' safety over their own; while an admirable trait, it could be quite destructive. She entered the building beside them, smiling broadly as old and new faces alike rose to greet her, and laughed alongside those same faces as Torbjörn Lindholm chased the two Commanders back out again, ranting about 'eating his precious balls'. My, her family had only become more eccentric over time...but they were still very much her family. Overwatch had always been home for her. She could only hope that both of the Commanders could find their peace here as well.

The voices of the nanites fled in their host's retreat, their chorus giving a temporary farewell that she felt through every circuit. A soft gasp came from her left, Echo turning to find a shell-shocked omnic beside her. Zenyatta looked as surprised as she felt. 

"You can hear them as well?" She asked quietly, the laughter still raucous around them as it faded into the background wall of noise.

"Yes." The monk stared out after them, the doors finally sliding shut following the hasty exit. "I would always know her call." 

"Her?" Echo blinked.

"Yes." Zenyatta hummed. "But one must wonder why the Iris has chosen to speak through Gabriel Reyes."


	4. Chapter 4

"The nanite colony is dependent on you for their survival. And yet…" Angela stared down at the squirming blood sample under a microscope in her office, intent and yet quietly horrified as the liquid ate itself and reproduced in the same movement. "This is fascinating."

Oh great. He was _fascinating_ again. Reyes's arms crossed even tighter across his chest, head turning away sharply. So far, this 'mandatory physical' had done nothing to quiet his nerves. After all, O'Deorain had said much the same not so long ago-

_'Your injuries are fascinating.' Mismatched eyes flared, a syringe in one hand as fingernails dripped over his shoulder. 'Do not worry, Gabriel. I will rebuild you.'_

Something touched his shoulder and immediately, Reaper was teleporting to the other side of the room, hissing angrily as hands clawed near-holes into his hoodie.

Angela gave him an unimpressed albeit worried look, her outstretched hand hovering over the office chair he'd formerly been seated in. Shit. Reyes twitched, opting to lean against the wall opposite instead. These damn episodes kept him on the edge of paranoia more times than he'd ever admit, out loud or otherwise.

"I'm not entirely sure that the freezing from the mission is connected to the nanites, unless…perhaps the lapses are caused by pieces of your mind degenerating and regenerating, thus causing a break?" The doctor studied the sample a moment longer before lifting it and opening the sealed glass plates. Immediately, the biomatter snapped back to Reyes's form as if magnetically attracted, both of them watching as it landed on the back of his hand and sank in, wisping smoke enveloping it as it was absorbed.

"I'm still analyzing the contents of the file you sent me-" to his credit, Gabriel did not flinch this time. "But I believe that a solution is hidden somewhere within the pages." 

Ha. Yeah. It was, but not in the pages Ziegler currently held. He'd get his hands on that full report, Reyes silently vowed, one way or another. It was only a matter of time.

_Time._ Just a week ago, he'd still been a member of the Talon High Council, honored guest to Jack Morrison's murder at the hands of Doomfist. Now, a mission, multiple injuries, a damning medical report, and several episodes later, Reaper found himself at a crossroads he'd never truly considered before. On one hand, he could complete the original mission: gain the trust of every member of Overwatch, then orchestrate a full takeover courtesy of Talon and hope they took him back. On the other hand, he could…stay? Hell, Jack already back at his side as if nothing had changed. Maybe there was a place for him at Overwatch, despite everything.

But that was just it, wasn't it? _Despite everything._ Later, after evading Torbjörn and snagging dinner, Reyes had found himself slowly and painfully rooting through what memories he had of Mina Liao. She had been the omnic specialist during the war, he'd finally remembered, and had turned out to be a valuable asset as well as an incredible friend. Despite not being a soldier, she'd played one of the biggest parts in shutting down the God AIs and ending the war for good. And yet…she was only one of hundreds of Overwatch agents that had died at Reaper's hands. Really, it was more in the _thousands_ if you counted Zurich. Shouldn't he feel just as guilty for each of those deaths? Even if he decided to stay, Overwatch would soon realize that his hands were drenched in blood and drop him like a pile of hot sh-

"Reyes?"

Gabriel snapped out of his thoughts, mentally berating himself for the lapse in concentration. "What?"

Angela sighed. "Do you believe that Talon's-" she swiped at her tablet. " _memory re-programming_ might be the reason you're having these odd freezing moments? Perhaps your mind is attempting to heal itself around whatever blocks they tried to put in place. Clearly, you've broken through several already."

Not as many as he would have liked, unfortunately. Of course, Ziegler had no way of knowing that. He was a self-proclaimed double agent from within Talon, after all. That lie, Gabriel realized numbly, was going to come back to bite him sooner or later. 

"I have no idea." It was the truth. For once.

A staring match began…but Angela broke it after only a moment, shaking her head, her lab coat gently brushing the side of the desk with the movement. "Well, I'll keep a close eye on your vitals to see if perhaps we can ascertain the cause of the freezing. Beyond that, I'm clearing you for training."

_Good._ About time.

"Echo expressed to me that she believes your condition to be an exacerbated version of PTSD."

Shit.

"It isn't out of the realm of possibility. However, I do not believe that is the main cause of these episodes."

…Really? Gabriel blinked. He'd gone to work on his tablet the night before (after shoving the Talon file into a folder and out of sight) and found that the symptoms nearly matched the typical PTSD metrics. The partial diagnosis filled him with dread. Having a name to put to the condition didn't make having it any better- unless he had the wrong name? "Why?"

"Simply put- and this is purely from my own observations and from seeing your body react to a minor episode here in the office- your mind isn't showing the right activity for PTSD. Perhaps it would be easier to show you?" Angela mused quietly, then pulled up an image on the screen that looked much like a mass of colors within a segment of a brain. " _This_ is what it should look like. This is a textbook example of what a mind with PTSD would resemble. A normal mind would look more like this." Another image appeared, areas appearing more connected and with less red dotting the outer areas.

All right. "And…?"

"And this-" she moved to the side, typing wildly. A third image popped onto the screen, looking wildly different than the other two. "-is yours." The outer areas of his mind, instead of being a pleasant turquoise/yellow like the other two, bled in different shades of crimson surrounding a spiderweb of cracked activity in the middle. Gabriel's breath felt like it had been sucked out with the wind. It looked…diseased. Angry. Hemorrhaged.

"The amount of activity is most likely due to the nanites. The breaks here, here, and here-" a slender, pale finger pointed out the areas on the screen. "Show where Talon most likely created breaks along your nervous system to facilitate the reprogramming."

"Stop."

"If we can find a way to- I'm sorry?" Angela turned. Reyes had his head in his hands, bent almost double as if in pain. 

_It hurt. It hurt it hurthurtHURT-_

"Reyes?"

_The cancer had metastasized. What the hell was he going to do now? Gabriel laughed humorlessly as he staggered down Zurich's hallways, hand trailing aimlessly along the wall. Fuck- his luck had always been shit, hadn't it? God, everything ached-_

"Stop-" he shrank back, caught halfway between memory and reality.

"Okay." Angela took a few steps forward, careful to not touch Reyes's form. Instead, she stood by his side and began taking slow, even breaths. For patients with anxiety or other disorders of that type, it was best to start with bringing them back to a point where they could find a modicum of comfort. She was not a psychologist nor did she proclaim to be one, but had thankfully retained some techniques through her days as Mercy and as a field doctor.

The pain that had suddenly radiated up his spine began to ease to a faint rumble at the back of his mind again even as the panic spread. What the hell was wrong with him?! His mind looked like it was bleeding out from the inside- who knew what the fuck Talon had really done in there?- and the nanites were doing whatever the hell they pleased. Who knew if they were even still keeping the cancer at bay or just- or just-

In.

Out.

In.

Out.

…Slowly, Gabriel found his mind calming. He found himself unable to look Ziegler in the eye, instead gritting his teeth and clenching fists to keep himself from deteriorating in her presence any further. As it was, his damn shoulders were leaking wisps of smoke upwards as if fires had been lit in the shoulders of his hoodie. "Were there any further tests needed?" Even to him, his voice sounded more dead than usual.

Angela winced. Right, because clearly her best way of reaching out to someone traumatized by being a human experiment for two decades was to show the effects of that trauma on their mind. Quickly, she shut off the three images on the screens above. "No, you're free to go."

Without another word, Reyes's form blurred and shifted out in a mass of smoke, barely moving the door as he seeped through and out of the medbay. Angela shook her head again as she watched him leave, sighing. Why didn't any of his test results leave her with any clear solutions? She should have known better than to think there might be an easy way to fix this.

\--

Fuck.

FUCK.

Reyes paced the length of his room repetitively, hands pulling his beanie down far enough to nearly cover his chin. Why couldn't he keep it together for one goddamn second? Just ONE goddamn SECOND?! His boot lashed out, kicking the side of the footlocker viciously, the tote rocking but not quite tipping over. He rounded on the locker, fury building further from the fact it hadn't knocked over completely. What, now he couldn't knock over a damn box?! Reaper reared back, smoke flooding off his shoulders, twin shotguns pulled from the shadows as the hardlight gauntlets he'd pulled on activated, muzzles aimed at the damnable footlocker-

A set of knocks echoed at the door. By the time he stalked to the door and wrenched it open, the wraith was physically shaking from pent-up frustration and wrath.

"WHAT?!"

…To his credit, Jack Morrison only blinked upon facing down a wall of smoke, glowing crimson eyes, and guns in his direction. Leaning against the doorframe, leather jacket creaking against the wood, he gestured with a thumb over his shoulder.

"Team training is about to start. You coming?"

Training. Team. Fuck.

Breathe.

Breathe, damnit!

In- in.

Out?

In.

Out.

It took another moment for the smoke to dissipate, mouth still twitching in displeasure as Reyes allowed himself to fully solidify. He wasn't wearing that damn armor again (too stupidly tight), so what he was currently wearing would work fine. Not like he really had anything to change into like Jack- wait. Where the hell had Jack gotten his earlier change of clothing from? Did he have a hidden footlocker too? Curiosity bled out his anger a bit. It didn't matter, not really. Hell, Jack was back in his old 'Soldier:76' get-up (minus the visor thankfully) like the week hadn't happened. 

…When had 'Morrison' become 'Jack' again?

"Yeah. Fine." Reyes huffed, grabbing his comm before closing the door behind him. His shoulder brushed Jack's, the two walking towards the training grounds side by side. A faint memory trickled in, reminding him of the odd silent communication he'd developed with Jack over the years. Sure, he barely remembered any of it, but…god, he did remember how annoyed Ana had been upon meeting them during the Crisis and realizing that the two of them were having a full, wordless conversation without her. Oh boy. Ha. A little more of the anger melted away-

A leather glove slid into his clawed gauntlet, squeezing once. Gabriel swallowed, not quite ready to face the understanding in the eyes searching his way. What exactly could he say? _'Sorry, I was ready to murder you in your sleep a few days ago but now I'm not going to.'_ Or, perhaps _'I keep having new memories appear in my head about you but I have no idea what most of them mean.'_ No, better: _'I don't know what's wrong with me because I'm literally a brainwashed Talon agent'._ Yeah. That would do it. 

Instead, Reyes squeezed back against the hand in his, squared his shoulders, and prepared himself for the onslaught of social activity about to be forced his way. Only a few hours and hell, maybe he'd be able to blow off some steam.

\--

No, this was hell.

Winston had come up with the bright idea of testing each member before training to get metrics on strength, speed, reflexes, and weaponry expertise. This, unfortunately, meant that most of them were standing around _waiting_ for their turn to what, show off? Reyes sulked off to the side, leaning against the wall with arms crossed. What the hell had happened to team training?

Jack had been pulled off to the side by Oxton, the two chatting amicably about the younger's girlfriend back in England. Charming, sure. Reyes tried focusing on the conversation from afar to calm himself-

"Gabriel."

When had he shut his eyes? Red pupils blinked open. "Ana."

The sniper shoved against his side, drawing a tense, gruff growl from Reyes…until he realized that Amari was smiling from beneath those two hoods of hers. Eyes rolled, the wraith shoved back.

"What."

"You're stuck in your own head. Stare at Jack's ass or something normal, will you?"

…Gabriel's head turned to stare at her. "…What?" Why the hell would he do that?

Ana snorted. "You know what I mean. Try to relax, will you? You're making me anxious." She dropped down the wall beside him to a seated, cross-legged position, methodically taking her weapon apart piece by piece, a polishing rag in hand to clean the rifle completely.

She…certainly was an odd one sometimes. Reyes huffed and dropped to a crouch beside her, grimacing as she continued her work. Fine.

_You could collect tactical intel on their abilities like this, you know._

He knew that voice. It was his. It was Reaper's. The grimace pulled tighter over his face, Reyes's eyes narrowing. 

_Why not? What do you owe them anyway?_

Gabriel nearly scoffed aloud. What _didn't_ he owe them, more like? They'd taken him in despite his history, reached out with tentative trust, given him shelter, amenities…a home, if only temporary. 

_Talon would take you back in with that amount of data to your name._

HA! **HA!** He owed Talon _nothing._ They'd probably thank their little brainwashed puppet before taking him back in to re-wash his memories, he thought viciously. They could burn in _hell_ for all he cared. …The revelation was more freeing than he's prepared for, Reaper's voice staying silent and without retort in the back of his head.

"Reyes, Gabriel."

What was this, grade school? Gabriel snorted, teleporting with ease to the doorway into the course. "Present." A lick of sarcasm tainted his deadpan voice. 

Somewhere behind him, he heard Jack choke back a chuckle. The corner of his mouth twitched upwards.

Winston cleared his throat, adjusting his glasses in a nervous tic as he looked back to his own tablet. "Let's begin with speed tests."

\--

The 'training' turned out to be less tedious than he'd expected. Ziegler and Winston took turns in evaluating each of the agents, most pairing up to complete strength and reflex tests. Usually, that would be a complete bore…but Gabriel, although not paired with anyone, began to realize that Jack kept looking his way and following him. Agility tests were easy enough, Gabriel not needing his nanites to scale a rope up a section of wall. But a quick look at Ziegler's tablet confirmed what had been itching at the back of his mind: Jack was _literally_ on his heels in every category thus far.

A grunt of exertion sounded over his shoulder, Reyes turning to find Jack's form pulling itself to his feet after scaling the same wall. Their eyes met- and the silent communication flared to life. Jack was fucking _competing_ with him. _'Challenge accepted',_ he thought back fiercely, chin lifting. _'You're on.'_

During strength testing, they spotted each other. In hand-to-hand combat, they matched each other blow for blow. Both knew how to pull out dirty tricks to best each other, but neither did. It was as if they had made a wordless agreement to see how far they could push each other while sticking to the rules. The competition got his every cell thrumming, snapping at the tentative friendship he and Jack had been edging back towards. And yet…Jack was snapping back, movement unfamiliar but practiced between them as magazines are traded in throws at the riflery course. The last shot was fired in unison, Reyes snarling as his smoking shot in the target sat an inch too far to the right, Morrison's own right in the damn middle.

Jack scoffed, hand swatting the beanie-covered head at the mistake. _'Rookie mistake'._

A crack echoed to their left, both turning to see Ana lean back up with a smirk. Her target board was clear, but Jack's was smoking, a perfect shot sent through the bullseye he'd already made. Hand on her hip, the body language was clear. _'I'm joining this party whether you want me to or not, assholes.'_

Simultaneously, an eyebrow shot up on both Jack's and Gabe's face, the two trading looks before smirking back at her. _'Fine by us.'_

A blast of shells obliterated the target on Gabriel's right, the three turning. Torbjörn Lindholm blew smoke from his rivet gun, giving them all an unimpressed look. A hammer hilt thudded heavily to the ground behind him, Reinhardt giving a rare, silent grin.

Reyes looked between them all, warmth spreading through his torso in an odd pulsing fashion even as his heart and lungs seemed to tighten. Sure, they were down a few body parts, but…the old strike team was back together again. He nodded once to acknowledge he was in for whatever they were planning, a quartet of grins answering back. 

"Winston," Ana called out, rifle slung over her shoulder. "Give us a challenge, will you?"

\--

Winston led the rest of the agents up to viewing platform above the training area, anxious but excited. It had been a long time since any of them had seen the original strike team in action. He wasn't even sure if he'd really seen them fighting in person or just seen it in one of the old war reels. Rapidly typing commands into the old console, Winston swallowed as the various simulation options came up. Oh man. What better than to give all of the agents a bit of inspiration from seeing their heroes from a bygone era fighting in the first Crisis?

"T-minus thirty seconds to start of simulation." He cued the advanced regime, grinning back at the others in the booth with him. Angela stood by Genji's side, their mouths barely moving in conversation as Zenyatta floating back behind them contently. Brigitte and Lena were gesturing wildly to the five in the area below, discussing excitedly as to which tactics they might use. Echo chatted amicably with Bastion, the two trading odd beep-boop-shreeee-sh-sh-sh quips back and forth, Echo's head tilting back in delighted laughter at an especially humorous exchange. Winston shook his head. Bastion didn't have too many close friends here (understandable, unfortunately), so it was good to see them getting along so well-

"T-minus twenty seconds."

\--

"What's the plan?"

Reyes blinked. Reinhardt, Lindholm, Amari, and Morrison were watching him- no, _waiting_ for him. They…looked to him for leadership? 

_Just like in the Crisis._

"I-" his throat closed up unexpectedly, Gabriel staring back. The moment felt charged, the air crackling. But he had _no idea_ what to give them. They were waiting for instruction. Even Jack, who had led them all for so long-

"T-minus fifteen seconds."

Gabriel blanked. His jaw opened, then closed several times before finally shutting completely. Frustration pressed in on him again, knowing in that moment that he was letting them all down. Why on earth would they look to him again after this?

"T-minus ten seconds."

"All right." Ana barked, all heads turning her way. "Reinhardt, shield up- hostiles will most likely come in from the front. Lindholm, put the turret behind that module and knock out as many of the heavies as you can before they get to us. Reyes, Morrison- you two take out the lightweight waves. I'll snipe from behind the shield. GO."

Lindholm rushed for the module. Hardlight shotguns reappeared in armored gauntlets, Gabriel's grey-splotched face paler than usual but no less determined. Ana had a plan. It was fine. He'd- they would be fine. Time to let off that steam. 

The second the doors opened for the 'hostiles', Reyes felt his stomach drop to his feet. Crisis-era 'bots rushed out, giving even Reinhardt pause as the omnics _(training bots- they were training bots)_ fanned out around them. It was only when a sudden crack knocked one of the omnic heads from their shoulders that they all snapped out of it, Reyes realizing in horror that all of them had frozen besides Amari herself, the sniper already loading another shot.

"I've got your backs." Ana snapped off another shot, knocking one, two, three bots backwards, all headless. "Go!"

The next moments blurred, Reinhardt's shield snapping up and Lindholm's turret thundering behind him. Gabriel sank into it, blasting omnic after omnic away, but it was less stress-relieving and more as if he were reliving another nightmare.

Unfortunately, he wasn't the only one having trouble with flashbacks.

\--

A creak sounded inside the console area, then another. What-? Winston had been too distracted by the odd disjointed start to the simulation to realize that another of their ranks was affected. He turned and realized that Echo was standing in front of Bastion, petting the top of his head soothingly. It did not seem to be having much effect.

"CHK-CHK-CHK-CHK-"

Oh no.

Bastion's light flickered, blue- blue- red- blue- red- RED. Winston barely had time to jump aside before the omnic gave an electronic wail and sprinted out, jumping right off the viewing platform to land amidst the other bots. Did the Crisis-era omnic think that perhaps they were real, that perhaps-

Bastion shifted to sentry mode, gun loading with an ominous 'ka-THUNK'. Everyone's breath froze in their lungs. NO.

"ABORT! Athena, shut down the simulation. Bastion, stop!"

\--

Without metal-human or happy-chirp at his side, Bastion could only see their brethren falling in battle without relief. They would defend them all to the end, they knew instinctively. They would go down together.

Five hostile signals flashed onto the optic sensor. Bastion opened fire, determined to mow them all down.

\--

Finally, they'd begun to strike a rhythm. It was, of course, at this moment that the battle dynamic changed dramatically. The bastion unit Lindholm had brought back plopped itself into the fray and, without pause, began _firing at them_. The gatling gun aimed first at Reinhardt, who barely got the shield up in time to protect himself, Amari, and Lindholm. But the bastion seemed to realize that it wasn't going to get through the barrier right away, turning instead-

-on Jack, who was attempting to flank Bastion from the side.

Time slowed, Gabriel's eyes widening in horror. Guns dropped, he lunged with every ounce of strength and speed he could muster-

The guns roared.

Jack landed so hard that the wind was knocked from him, the soldier gasping for air from behind the training module. Gabriel couldn't remember feeling so relieved in his life, braced on top of the other and barely restraining himself from shaking Jack bodily. Damn man! What the hell had Jack been thinking?! Always rushing in-

_Always rushing in._

"You idiot." Bastion was paying attention to Reinhardt and the rest again, the sound of bullets pinging off the shield echoing in the background. Gabriel glared down at Jack, their foreheads nearly touching. He raised himself up on one hand so that he could poke at the leather-clad chest angrily. "What the hell were you thinking?"

"Knew you had my back." Jack managed to wheeze. "Need to get back out there."

"No! Stay here- we've got this-" Both heads snapped to look to the side, Winston landing beside them with wide eyes. "Uh…am I interrupting something?"

Interrupting? What was he talking about? Apparently Jack knew, the scarred face flushing red before hands shoved Gabriel off. Wow. Not even a 'thank you' for saving his life, Reyes grumbled wordlessly. His left side twinged, the wraith turning to examine the darkened area of the hoodie with a grimace. Shit. He hated having to wash blood out.

"Winston, what the hell happened?" Jack demanded, shifting to the side to try to get a look at the suddenly too-quiet area beyond the module. "Didn't we have Bastion cleared for service-?"

"Yeah, we did." The gorilla winced. "Torbjörn noted that they didn't seem to have any troubles unless introduced to a Crisis-esque situation. But I figured Bastion would be fine with seeing the simulation, what with how they were able to handle the situation in the Ironclad Factory-"

"With Lindholm by his side." Reyes cut in sharply. The bot had episodes like his and the monkey had just _assumed_ everything was fine-? Speaking of which- "And what the hell were you thinking? We didn't win the Crisis to get shoved back into it without warning."

"I thought it would be a good way to bring you all together!" Winston cringed into himself, guilt mixing with worry as a soft set of electronic wails sounded behind them. "I just-"

"Winston- oh good! You're all okay." Tracer blinked in next to them in an orange-yellow blur, the lithe woman giving a sigh of relief at seeing all three of them. "Captain Amari shot some sort of sleeper bullet into Bastion! Brigitte and Chief Engineer Lindholm managed to calm 'm with Zenyatta and Echo's help. Crazy stuff. I think you can come out now though. Should be all clear. I'm gonna go see if they need any more help." With another flash, she was gone.

"I- all right." The scientist dropped his tesla cannon to the ground with an exhausted 'thunk', wiping his forehead of the sweat that had collected there. People could have died had they not all acted so quickly.

"It gets easier."

Winston looked up warily, the former Strike Commander staring evenly back. "I'm sorry?"

"Don't be afraid to step up. Accept responsibility, but do so with a set of solutions on the back-burner for how to fix the issue next time." Morrison moved only to pick up his pulse rifle from where it had been knocked from his grip, the gun snapping into place on his back with an easy twist and turn. The soldier moved to Winston's side, patting his shoulder. "Reyes was right that you need to be more careful. Now, you just need to learn from the mistake and move forward. We all make mistakes." Jack huffed a laugh. "Believe me."

For a moment, the gorilla swore he saw Harold Winston in the soldier's worn face. Choking back a surge of emotion, Winston nodded (perhaps a few more times than appropriate). "Thank you. I- thank you. And sorry. I'm so sorry!" 

"I'm fine-"

"But you're bleeding?" Winston motioned to the bloody patch on the leather jacket, both he and the former Strike Commander realizing at the same moment that it didn't penetrate the material.

Jack's eyes widened, head snapping to and fro so quickly his hair ruffled. Shit. Reyes-

Reyes was gone.

\--

Waves. Wind. Sunlight. Had to try to focus on that- had to breathe-

_FUCK BREATHING! ALL WE DO IS TRY TO FUCKING BREATHE!_

Gabriel laid back against the concrete top of the module, far enough away from the rest of the team that he could feel the pressure in his chest lift. Dull clinking sounded as the omnic's bullets popped out of his wounds, healing in aching stabs of pain. He pressed himself back into the concrete as far as he could, Gabriel's fists shaking at his sides. Better him than Jack, who didn't heal like he did. He wanted Jack Morrison alive. He wanted…he wasn't sure what he wanted, but it didn't include Jack's death. Or Ana's death. Or…any Overwatch member's death. Not even the damn omnic that shot him. Hell, maybe he could fucking commiserate with the Bastion over episodes neither of them could fucking control.

He gave a soul-deep sigh, teeth gnashing. Was it even worth trying to make up for the blood on his hands? Was he even sorry for it? Was the grief he was feeling generated from a feeling of sorrow for the deaths of the agents at his hands…or at the realization that he would never be free of the weight of those deaths on his shoulders? They weren't all necessary kills, he knew that. He'd known it even upon taking the lives. Talon had given him free reign when it came to hunting the old Overwatch agents, after all. They had encouraged his actions, feeding his ego and allowing the reaping to continue unhindered-

Reaping. He hadn't reaped in almost a week, if not longer. Was that part of why he felt so much more human these days? Between that and remembering how to eat, to cook, to even sleep…it was both draining and invigorating. Had Talon done that purposefully? By taking away his needs for basic human needs and encouraging him to keep the mask on at all times, had they aimed to make him the equivalent of a living killer robot? What a dichotomy, he thought humorlessly, to turn the former leader of the forces fighting against the tide of the Omnic Crisis into a version of an omnic himself. What a fucking joke.

…He wasn't that different from the Bastion, was he? Programmed to be a murderous machine and with a history of blood that stretched back decades, they were dark mirror versions of each other. Now, all he needed was a language no one could understand and a Lindholm by his side.

"REYES!" A shout rang out from down below. "I know you're up there!"

Ha. Who needed a Lindholm when he could have a Morrison?

\--

The second Gabriel appeared, Jack had him by the front of his hoodie and was yanking him forward with a growl. Sure enough, there was a dark spot and holes adjacent from where the blood had stained Jack's own jacket. Damn it, Gabe! The skin was already healing underneath, but still raw and bloody beneath the hoodie.

Something snapped in Jack, the soldier taking Gabriel's shoulders in hand and shoving him back into the wall of the module. 

"What the fuck is with you?" He pressed the form into the wall further, near-shaking the man. "You're injured, damnit. Why do you always do this?!" Jack edged in as Gabe attempted to move away, holding firm. "You don't have to be alone. I'm right here, Gabe. I'm right here! Punch me, kick me, spit at me but for fuck's sake, let me help you!"

Reyes twisted in the grip, growling back but…his body was relaxing into the grip. Jack's hands were firm and warm and…grounding. 

_What?_

Injured pride reared, screaming at him to get away. "Fuck you!" With a quick shift, Gabriel was out of the hold and away. "I don't need to be fucking coddled, Morrison." He didn't need anyone. He didn't- he-

_"Maybe you could go say hi to Gruñón. I'm sure he'd be willing to lend an ear."_

_"I've got you, Gabe."_

Gabriel stopped. Swallowed roughly.

In.

Out.

No. He was just taking out his anger and frustration on Jack and that wasn't right. Damnit, he didn't want to hurt him. Punch, kick, spit-? What the hell, Jack? He hadn't done that in the past- he knew even without fully remembering- and he sure as hell wasn't about to start now.

Reluctantly, he turned and stared Jack down. Remnants of his own blood were drying on the gaudy leather jacket still, Gabriel watching with morbid curiosity as it flecked off and scuttled back to him. Maybe if he focused on that-

"Sorry." He couldn't say it while looking Jack in the eye, fists held tightly at his sides. Gabriel still couldn't wrap his head around how Jack could look past everything said and done and still care, but it certainly didn't give Gabe any right to use that to be an asshole to the one person who seemed determined to stay by his side.

At first, nothing happened. Then…a sigh echoed through the space and a form neared his. A hand snuck around and then into his own, the motion answer enough. This time, Gabe knew the hand wasn't fully for his own comfort but for Jack's. And honestly, he realized with surprise, that was okay. This time, he squeezed Jack's hand first. 

"I'm not going anywhere." Reyes finally says aloud, voice quieter than he'd expected in the suddenly-thick air. The hand in his squeezed back without a word of acknowledgement and…Gabriel knew that was fair. Jack didn't fully believe him yet- hell, HE didn't believe himself yet- but there was progress where there hadn't been any before. For the first time, Gabriel realized that, despite everything that had happened, he was remembering how to trust Jack again. If that wasn't a miracle, he didn't know what was. Hadn't he gotten here by hating Jack so much that it had taken a mental break to intervene and stop him- stop Doomfist- from ending it all on the dusty marble floor on the other side of the European coast? Without that freeze, Soldier 76 would have been left a bloody, crushed heap of flesh and Reaper would have still been a puppet of Talon. 

_"Do you believe that Talon's memory re-programming might be the reason you're having these odd freezing moments?"_

A head drooped to rest on his shoulder. Reyes hesitantly tilted his own to rest against it, eyes closing as his cheekbone was tickled by hair. Unlike the previous morning in the medbay, this felt…right. Or perhaps he was just too tired of fighting it-? …No. This was right. 

_"I'm not entirely sure that the freezing from the mission is connected to the nanites, unless…perhaps the lapses are caused by pieces of your mind degenerating and regenerating, thus causing a break?"_

Slowly, they began walking back towards the center of the training center. Reyes reached up to ruffle the already-mussed white hair, Jack giving him an oddly fond look before swatting the hand away.

_"Zenyatta may be able to help you center yourself and even communicate with the nanites."_

What if the episodes were connected to the nanites and whatever else Echo had felt there?

_"I have heard of nanites used in healing before but I have never heard of sentience coming upon them. However, Zenyatta's specialties lie in inner healing. If anyone could guide you, it is him."_

Zenyatta. That monk omnic that Genji had arrived with, the one with the golden pants? Gabriel's eyes narrowed as he and Jack came into view of the other Overwatch agents, gaze zeroing in on the distant silver figure. He had to try make sense of all this. That way, when Overwatch inevitably came to its senses and threw him out on his ass, he'd still be able to make sure Talon didn't get its claws into him again. He owed it to Jack to try, at the least.

Perhaps it was time he met this Zenyatta to settle this once and for all.


	5. Chapter 5

A silver head lifted upon approach, Zenyatta seeming to sense company as they halted a few feet to his side. Slowly, his face tilted their way, angling first towards Jack before landing on Gabriel.

An odd vibration ran through his form at the eye contact, Gabriel staring evenly back into optical receptors determinedly. It was time to get answers, one way or another. The first question sat posed on the tip of his tongue, mouth opening-

"Commander Morrison." Zenyatta bowed his head towards Jack minutely in greeting. "I must unfortunately steal Commander Reyes from your presence momentarily. I hope that this would not bother you too greatly?"

…Uh. Red eyes snapped back, hand tightening around the one in his. A muscle twitched in Jack's cheek just below the scarred tissue, betraying just how much it actually bothered him.

"We should not be more than an hour or so."

Another twitch.

"But I fear that delaying this conversation further may have dire side effects."

Dire side effects? Great. Gabriel huffed, shoulder nudging into Jack's. He didn't like this feeling of the situation's control being swept out from under his feet, but…hell, at this point he was hoping for a damn miracle. If listening to the omnic could give him a solution to the episodes, that was worth it. He squeezed Jack's hand and gave a sharp, short nod. _'It's okay. I'm fine. It's going to be fine.'_

 _'You sure?_ Jack's eyes cut him to the bone, darting back to Zenyatta momentarily before returning to him. _'You're absolutely sure?'_

 _'Yeah.'_ Gabriel nudged him, finally letting go and taking a step to the side. Jack gave him a final look, then finally returned the nod to both him and Zenyatta before stiffly walking off towards Winston. God, there was the look of a man that didn't like the direction he was heading. Reyes grimaced. Jack was so used to running towards him that forcing himself into the opposite looked like torture. …He'd make it up to him later. Somehow.

"I know that must have been difficult." Zenyatta hummed, motioning with one hand. "Come. Let us walk while I tend to a few last patients."

Gabriel's hand felt incredibly empty and hollow after so much time in the company of Jack's. Idly, his fingers squeezed into a fist repeatedly to try to dull the feeling as the two began to move around the outskirts of the team. Genji and Echo talked quietly as the Shimada polished his blade in rhythmic movements. Tracer and Ziegler were nowhere in sight- perhaps back at the medical bay? Their handiwork was evident in the hastily procured bandages that Reinhardt now sported, armor removed from his top half and torso heavily wrapped, multicolored bruises peeking out over the tops of his shoulders.

Despite the injuries, the Crusader cheerily waved the two of them over. "Ah, Gabriel! It is good to see you are all right as well. What an exciting battle that was-!" Abruptly, he winced- and the reason why peeked over his shoulder, grey hair and sharp one-eyed gaze centering on the newcomers.

"As requested, Captain." Zenyatta held out a few biotic capsules. "Doctor Ziegler relented after realizing what they were for. I believe she is still hoping to see Lieutenant Reinhardt in the medical facilities later."

"Ach!" Reinhardt grumbled, face souring. "I do not need further treatment after- HKK-!" The mammoth of a man jerked as a newly constructed biotic syringe jabbed into his upper back, Ana watching the contents empty as she nimbly pulled the bandages back into place before injecting another capsule lower down.

"The biotics will dull your pain but they will not fully heal your injuries." Her voice, both soft and stern, floated over his bowed head. "You forget that you are human sometimes."

"Ach. Maybe." Grimacing, Reinhardt winced as the next shot was applied.

Zenyatta moved on, leaving Gabriel to gape at the retreating back and at the pair of his old friends. Shouldn't he say something, or- shit. Where was he going? Cursing under his breath, Gabriel quickly shifted to smoke and darted after the omnic and around the corner-

Once he reformed into a more solid form, Reyes realized why they were here. Torbjörn and Brigitte were sitting next to a shivering Crisis bot in the isolated hallway, both talking to each other and to Bastion, who answered from time to time with a soft chirp or set of beeps. Zenyatta eased closer, placing a hand on the hard shell of the other omnic and patting Bastion gently. Gabriel watched only from the shadows, both entranced and feeling as if he were an intruder on the scene.

Something stirred around Zenyatta's neck, an orb pulled from place by nimble metallic fingers and handed over. Bastion clasped at it clumsily, head tilting as the Lindholms fell quiet, only to chirrup in delight as a holographic image of a bird appeared atop the orb, hopping in place and singing cheerily. The omnic's body seemed to sag in relief, staring fixatedly at the image of the bird. Brigitte smiled, leaning closer to Bastion, and Torbjörn gave Zenyatta a discreet thumbs-up and nod of approval before returning his attention to the hologram, the omnic, and his daughter.

Once again, Zenyatta moved away…this time away from the training facility altogether. It occurred to Gabriel as he finally caught up that the omnic did not appear to actually be walking; instead, Zenyatta floated with crossed legs, the edges of his pants nearly catching the gravel and grass below. How was he doing that? Grav-repulsors, perhaps?

"Commander Reyes."

"Hm."

"Do you know how Reinhardt Wilhelm was injured?"

…What? Gabriel side-eyed the omnic. "No. I'm assuming the Bastion shot him." He'd been a bit busy with Jack at the time-

"Do you know the significance of Ganymede?"

Gan-what? "…No?"

"Come." 

Zenyatta finally halted at the cliffside, the land jutting out below them into a point that overlooked the beaches below. If not for the height, one might even find it idyllic. Gabriel reluctantly joined the omnic on the outlook, arms crossed over his chest. The point of this had not been to gain further questions, damnit. What was the point of-

"Sit with me."

…Fine. Okay. Patience and all that shit. Gabriel reluctantly settled himself into a cross-legged position on the grass.

"Describe this place to me."

Really? Gabriel swallowed the insult that wanted to fly out of his throat and tried complying. "We're on the cliffs of Gibraltar."

"No. Describe it."

…Ugh. Seriously? Teeth gnashed. "…It's…a cliff. Beach below. Waves as far as the eye can see."

"And?"

Gabriel's temper flared, eyes flaring an angry crimson as he turned, rounding on the omnic hovering just above the ground beside him. "And what? What the hell does describing the grass do to help any of this?"

Zenyatta's expressionless face tilted towards him. "It helps many things. Tell me, did I ask you to tell me what you saw?"

"No, you told me to fucking _describe_ it-"

"And yet, you have yet to use anything but your eyes."

Gabriel blinked. What? He- what?

"What would you say the purpose of your nanites are?"

 _Finally_. Echo's words came back to him, Gabriel's voice deadpan. "To keep me alive."

"Do you suppose that they allow you your abilities to keep you alive?"

…What? The teleportation and wraithing, Reyes realized suddenly. "…I suppose not." He replied slowly.

"Would you say that they need to allow you to eat, to sleep, to drink water, or even to breathe in order to function?"

Gabriel swallowed roughly. That hit a bit close to home. "No. Probably not."

"And yet, they do." Zenyatta clasped his hands, fingers interlacing. "And yet, you do."

What did that even mean? More fucking questions.

"Tell me, what do you know of the Iris?"

_**'Do not fear, Gabriel Reyes. I am on your side.'** The voice echoed through the comms, the lights of the hard drive all flashing bright before cutting out completely and swathing the room in darkness. **'I am the Iris.'**_

"I know that some omnics believe it's a higher entity of sorts, perhaps even a place. A Valhalla of sorts?" Gabriel paused, the memory teasing the edges of his eyelids. "But…I think it might be more of a God AI."

"What would lead you to believe that?" Curiosity seemed to tinge Zenyatta's voice, stronger now than in any other question prior.

**_'I wish for you to discover a secret that they have tried to hide.'_ **

"I heard her." It sounded so insane to say it aloud but…hell, if anyone was to understand, it would be an omnic monk. "The Iris spoke to me years ago, right before we took out the London Omnium."

"You have not heard her since?"

"Not to my knowledge." Gabriel grimaced, relief at being taken seriously tempering his frustration. "My memories have been…difficult to sort through as of late though."

Silence fell on both of them, Zenyatta appearing to contemplate the ocean before them. Minutes into the quiet, the former commander finally looked out to the water as well. The waves were- Gabriel forced himself to stop. No, the bot was right. All he was using were his eyes. Reluctantly, he shut them.

Breathe.

In- NO.

Gabriel hissed. He didn't want to think about breathing! He wanted to- to- 

"You have been cut off from your senses in order to help you to forget your humanity."

…What? Eyes shot back open.

"You lack empathy, and yet you saved Commander Morrison earlier." Zenyatta's fingers swayed to and fro while still linked. "You do not need to sleep, and yet you do. You do not need to eat or drink, and yet you do. This is all a result of the past few days at the base. Am I correct thus far?"

"…Yes." Where was this going?

"The nanites were programmed to keep you alive. It is only by the will of the Iris that they are being reprogrammed to allow you to recognize your humanity once more."

That- that made no sense. Gabriel gave a hoarse laugh of disbelief. "Right. And why the hell would the Iris do that?"

"You are important." Zenyatta's head tilted the other way. "The omnic crisis is resurfacing. Underlying factors from the first crisis remain that have spurred the second into existence. I can only assume that the Iris believes that you hold the key to halting this war in its tracks."

…That was in no way the answer he expected. His breath froze in his lungs.

"Your nanites, once programmed to keep you as a tool of Talon, are now being used as a conduit for the Iris herself. She seeks to heal you in a way that they previously could not." Zenyatta finally unclasped his hands and reached for another orb from about his neck. "However, there is something blocking her way. If I may, I would like to attempt to clear that block."

Clear the block and let a God AI into his head-?! It took every ounce of willpower Gabriel had to not scrabble backwards. "What happens if I let you do that?"

The orb hummed, lifting from Zenyatta's hand with a golden glow. "You have been having freezing episodes over the past week, yes? Doctor Ziegler spoke with me about possible causes. However, I believe that they are caused by the nanites attempting to push through the block."

So what, the choices were to let the Iris in or let the episodes go on indefinitely? The thought of being turned into a brainwashed tool again injected panic through every nerve. Gabriel turned and set his hands on Zenyatta's shoulders, eyes focused on the omnic's slits. "I won't be mind-controlled again. You- you _promise me_ that if this goes to shit and the Iris takes over or Talon gets control, you will find a way to end it or end me. Got it?"

Zenyatta nodded. "It is not a promise I take lightly. But yes, you have my word."

Okay. Okay, it- okay. Gabriel forced himself to swallow, sitting back and curling his fists into the grass below. "…I'm ready."

God, Jack was going to hate his guts if he'd never gotten to say goodbye before- 

Oh.

Zenyatta pushed the orb up, the sphere hovering a foot or so above the former Commander's head, a golden tendril reaching out and attaching to his form. Slowly, the tendril's point of contact began to run down, easing along the top of his spinal column and along his neck.

It was like…sitting out under the sun for the first time after having been inside for weeks. Gabriel's worry stayed constant, but it melted a bit under the gentle caress of warmth. It almost felt like a hand smoothing down his back-

OW FUCK WHAT THE HELL

Grass went flying as Gabriel's fists yanked up, neck arching backwards as his head was thrown back, mouth agape and eyes wide and unseeing.

_'Asking for help isn't weakness.'_

A scream started somewhere below his navel, ripping out of his throat as pain ricocheted along his spine.

_'Nanite colony injected to replicate cell regeneration. Nanite primary function successfully re-established along spine.'_

The warmth sank into a spot on his spine and **yanked**.

_'Implants successfully installed. Nerve structure successfully re-established along spine.'_

Again and again, it pulled and pulled. All he could see was blue, blue, blue-

_'Memory re-programming failure noted: statistical data and intel wiped from subject's mind and may not be retrievable.'_

Something came loose. Like a puppet cut from strings, the form slumped into the ground.

The orb floated back to Zenyatta's hand, a small microchip with long wires attached to the golden tether. He carefully picked up the tiny piece of tech between thumb and forefinger, examining the tiny 'T' symbol slanted inside. Programmed brain-washing, indeed.

\--

…Earth. Fingertips dug in past rubbery vegetation and into the familiar dirt. The smell was old, a friend from a distant time. Grass tickled his cheek, rustling as he shifted, his chest vibrating with a groan. Nn-?

Green. His vision was filled with green. Overwhelming green. He gave another muffled groan, sinking back into earth and dirt and-

Salt? There was salt somewhere. A soft screeching of gulls echoed overhead, a gentle crash of waves easing him with their rhythmic regularity. Time was a construct, intangible and immeasurable-

…There was dirt on his tongue.

Coughing roughly, he grimaced and wiped a hand across his face-

The sensation of fingers against skin was so strong that he had to drop the hand, breath hiccupping in a clatter that shook his chest-

It was so bright, SO bright.

Step one. Step- step one-

No. No no no.

He couldn't- it was too- the waves were too loud, the- he could hear the shifting of feet, the clicking of machinery, the whirr of training bots at the rifle range, the- 

Smells EVERYWHERE. He shouldn't be able to- not without his nose- but the salt of the sea was everywhere, grass and dirt a comforting medium still on the edge of too strong as oil, metal, and _warmth, electricity_ sat on his left. 

Touching the ground was…it was too much. Everything was too much.

**Breathe.**

Too much. He- he was going insane with the onslaught of it all, hands pressing to the sides of his head and form curling into that soft/sharp of the grass, vegetation attempting to sneak into the hole where his nose should be-

**Gabriel Reyes.**

…Was that the Iris?

**Breathe, Gabriel.**

In.

Out.

The waves crashed behind him and with them, his mind slowly normalized to the new level of sensation. The bite of the sea breeze cut cold streaks in his lungs as Gabriel woke from what felt like a thousand-year slumber, exhaustion beating at his head with a stick. One hand lowered and pressed into the grass, running along the blades as the tips tickled his palm. And then, crimson eyes opened.

Zenyatta's silver skin glittered under the mid-day sun, the omnic hovering close to but not quite over him. The sunflower-yellow of his pants was so close that Gabriel could see the weave of criss-crossed thread, a slight smear of green betraying a moment in the grass.

"Commander Reyes?"

Was that worry in the omnic's voice? Gabriel pushed himself up, balance feeling a bit like he'd been kicked in the head by a rogue OR unit. …Had his throat always felt this scratchy? He swallowed again, the feeling reminiscent of a bout of strep flu he'd had as a kid.

"P-present."

"How are you feeling?"

Feeling. _Feeling_ was the problem. Everything was still on the edge of too bright, too loud, too much. Despite that, he felt…he felt good. Centered. The ringing from the episodes before had disappeared completely. He hadn't realized that the ringing had become continuous until it was…gone. It was gone. What exactly had Zenyatta done? 

"Raw." Gabriel admitted.

"That is to be expected." Zenyatta nodded sagely, orbs glinting around his neck and chiming gently in place. "It will take time to adjust. I highly recommend taking the next few days to relax. You must allow your body and mind to recalibrate."

Had the orbs always made that sound? Gabriel sucked in another breath, the air burning his lungs in a way that reminded him he was alive.

"Before I help you back to your room, I must ask- can you tell me now why Reinhardt Wilhelm was injured?"

Why would he know that any better now than he had from the first asking of that question? Despite his confusion, Reyes tried to think back. Why was Reinhardt injured? Certainly, the Bastion had hit him. But-

The bruises. Reinhardt had been hit from _behind_. Ana had been treating his back. That coupled with the fact that Ana was treating him even after Ziegler had apparently already finished-

"His shield had broken under Bastion's onslaught." Gabriel remembered aloud, the words feeling alien on his tongue but correct. "So he turned and protected Ana from the bullets."

Metal hands clapped together, then folded back together. "Very good. And the significance of Ganymede?"

…Gabriel stared. "What the hell is a Ganymede?" He asked hoarsely.

Zenyatta nodded again, this time in understanding. "Very good. Unless you possessed omnipotence, you would not know the nature of what Ganymede was nor what he represented. For clarification, Ganymede is the name of the bird whose image I presented Bastion with."

Oh! The bird. 

…The question about Reinhardt had been to test him, but the question about Ganymede had been to see if the Iris had taken over. Clever. Gabriel nodded back, the motion sending a small shockwave of pain down his back. This omnic was gaining more of his respect by the minute.

"The block appears to have been created by this." Zenyatta held up the computer chip, wires dangling over his hand like cobwebs. Black liquid dripped down the lines, plopping on the grass idly. Gabriel realized after a moment that the odd fluid was actually blood, the droplets slithering back towards him after gathering on the grass blades like some sort of alternative goth dew. "I would like to take this to Doctor Ziegler for analysis with your permission."

"Granted." He'd pulled that out of his back? Goddamn. "What is it?"

"I am guessing it is some sort of inhibitor chip for the nanites to keep them focused on their original objective."

Fuck. Okay.

"Might I assist you back to your quarters?"

Assist? Ha. He didn't need-

Gabriel pushed himself up onto his feet and immediately swayed, dangerously close to the edge of the cliff-

A metal arm caught his before Reyes could fall, Zenyatta carefully pulling the former commander closer and looping the arm over his own shoulders, his own arm going around Gabriel's waist to keep him upright. "I hope you will allow me to help until you can at least walk on your own-?"

…Yeah, okay. 

Metal from his boots pressed into his shins with every step, grounding his steps even as grass turned back to gravel and to concrete. Gabriel closed his eyes, allowing Zenyatta to lead them. He'd already trusted the omnic this far, hadn't he? Dust and the remains of life replaced the sea, telling him they had to be close to the dormitory-

"What the-? Gabe?" 

He knew that voice. Gravel and whiskey. A smell wafted his way- was that sandalwood? The same as that soap Gabriel had found in the shower-

"What did you do to him?!"

Steps quickened in front of them. Gabriel's eyes blinked open-

-and he finally saw Jack Francis Morrison in full for the first time since Zurich. Pink-tinged scars ran down his face, pale skin peachy against the shock of thinning hair atop his head, that little familiar spike at the back sticking out like an antenna. Jack's leather jacket lay unzipped, exposing a black compression shirt that clung to his torso, muscles much more lean than in years past but surely just as strong as they'd always been. He could see that battered visor hanging from a loop on his belt, the determination in those sharp eyes (had that color paled too?)-

In the middle of his observations, Gabriel realized that Jack was a half-second away from decking the omnic currently supporting his frame. There was no time to tell him no, no time to pull Zenyatta out of the way-

-and in a flash, he knew exactly what to do. Gabriel took a step forward, hand shoving into the inner joint of Jack's elbow as the strike attempted to connect-

The contact stuttered his block to a halt, the heat from Jack's form emanating even through the jacketed arm. The arm fortunately froze too, never managing to connect with its intended target, a shock of blue eyes staring from inches away.

"…Gabe?"

"You really need to stop this habit of hitting what you don't understand." Gabriel attempted to joke. God, his throat was still so irritated. He leaned in, forehead hitting Jack's shoulder and soaking in the heat from that contact too.

"I believe we have found a way to halt his episodes." Zenyatta finally spoke from somewhere behind him. "However, the effort exhausted both body and mind. Commander Reyes requires a few days of inactivity to fully recover."

"Episodes?" Warmth shifted, Gabriel giving a tired hum of acknowledgement that appeared to placate Jack. "Okay. But I swear-"

"He will be fine. You have my word."

New arms wrapped up around Gabriel's form, a sound of surprise vibrating in his chest as his feet left the ground. Was Jack actually carrying him? He didn't need to be carried, he could walk-

…Actually, no. This was nice. Hell, it was REALLY nice. Jack's pulse echoed in his ears from so close, his head tucking up under Jack's chin. Was this what Jack had felt like when he'd been carried out of the Ironclad factory? Gabriel was starting to see the appeal of it.

With the warmth wrapped around him, it was easy enough to let himself succumb to the exhaustion. Leather pressed to his cheek, the familiar _'thud-thump'_ heartbeat sang a lullaby to which Gabriel Reyes gratefully let himself be lulled to sleep.


	6. In Flames- part 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Note: this chapter contains blood, angst, and temporary character death

**_Zurich, Switzerland_ **

**_2070_ ** __

_Objective: eliminate target. Shadows shifted unseen down the headquarter hallways, coalescing only when the coast was confirmed clear. Shivers vibrated up through the metal of his boots, Reaper's eyes narrowing on the nameplate next to the door before him. There would be just enough time to complete the mission before extraction. Orders were clear: eliminate and leave the body to be destroyed in the ensuing explosion, seal himself within the blast-proof chamber nearby, then teleport to the surface for evac once the dust had settled. Simplicity at its finest._

_The fool was sitting at his desk as if nothing was wrong, even seeming to greet him as Reaper flung the door open. Apparently though, the Strike Commander's reflexes were as good as ever, Reaper's eyes narrowing as the target managed to duck below the shots and even attempted to knock the shotguns from his hands, both men sent to the ground as they wrestled for control. An image of Moira appeared in his mind, heterochromic eyes rolling as she tapped her watch. Time was of essence. This needed to end. NOW._

_Reaper shifted, literally sliding through the target's fingers. Scooping the nearest gun from the floor, he shoved the barrel into the man's head, sneering as he re-solidified. Game over. Checkmate._

_"Gabe, why?"_

_Check- checkmate. A wave of memory stabbed into his mind, Reaper sent mentally reeling as images flicked before him of two men, laughing as they played chess on their off-time throughout the years-_

_"Gabriel-"_

_Blue eyes. Blue- blue-_

_The gun lowered, hand falling limp and allowing the weapon to drop once more out of sight. No, this wasn't right. The target- he needed to take out the target-_

_Gabriel Reyes swallowed and took a step back as he stared down in horror at the prone form of his best friend. "Jack?" What the hell had just happened? What had he almost just **done?!** Jack wasn't a target. He wasn't- he couldn't-_

_Eliminate. Seal. Evac._

_Oh god. Oh god. What the hell was going on-_

_The floor rolled beneath them, the pieces of Gabriel's mind snapping back together just in time to realize what was happening. Headquarters was going to explode and take the Strike Commander's body with it. Hazel eyes shrank to slits. That wasn't going to happen on his goddamn watch._

_"What are you-?!" Jack (understandably) struggled as he was yanked off his feet by the back of his jacket and shoved under his own desk. "Gabe, talk to me! Wh-"_

_There was almost nothing Gabriel wanted to do more than talk to him right now, but first- first he needed Jack to survive the initial blast. "No time! Stay down. Stay there!" With a press of button, the Strike Commander was sealed inside the compartment…and not a moment too soon._

_The initial blast flung him across the room, the Blackwatch Commander keeping himself up- barely. Determined to stay as close to the desk as possible, Gabriel leapt off the wall towards it-_

_The world exploded. The floor gave way, lava-hot rubble pouring in from above and below. Steel girders creaked and snapped like popcorn, one coming too close- too close-_

_Blinding pain punched past, a scream swiped from his gut as hot metal scraped from one side of his face to the other. Gabriel heard rather than saw the next girder coming in for the kill and quickly shifted to smoke, remaining there as long as he could until he found a nearby hollow to catch his breath. Finally, the rubble slowed to an eerie stalemate of a landslide, occasional rumbles in the distance confirming its false stability. The reprieve was enough for Gabriel to get his comm out of his pocket and back into his ear, the Commander attempting to triangulate the approximate position of the Strike Commander's desk amid the debris-_

_"-abe?"_

_Jack! Gabriel's mouth opened to respond and it was then that he realized the extent of the damage from the girder. His jaw twisted unevenly, bone snapping back into place as the muscle and skin began to warp around it. Fuck. What the hell-_

_"Gabriel, do you read me?"_

_Just hold on a fucking second! Gabriel wheezed bloody bubbles as lips reformed and his goatee grew back in-_

_"Can you hear me?"_

_There was panic in Jack's voice that he'd rarely heard before. Despite the still-healing wounds, Gabriel forced himself to activate the comm. "Jack." Damn. His voice sounded like crap._

_"GABE. Did you get clear? Tell me you got clear of the debris?"_

_Pff. Yeah, no. "Not exactly- clear." It occurred to him that he could actually hear Jack's voice faintly through the rubble without the aid of the comm. He couldn't be more than a dozen feet away, given the density of the debris. "Hold on."_

_As expected, Jack kept talking even as Gabriel shut off his comm and shifted back to smoke, following the sound of the voice down, down-_

_There._

_Slithering in through a crack in the compartment, Gabriel re-formed to find blue eyes mere inches away. His breath hitched, relief flooding every fiber of his being. He exhaled- and instantly regretted it, a bloody mist freckling Jack's face. Ah shit._

_"Oh my god. Gabe-" skin met newly-healed skin, Jack's thumb smoothing down from the corner of one eye. It was- it-_

_Gabriel's breath hitched. No. Couldn't think about that now. Think about surviving now, damnit. Why the hell did his attraction to his best friend always seem to hit at the most inopportune times? "Good. The desk worked." He let himself ramble slightly, looking over Jack's form as best he could in the low lighting. Amazingly, the Strike Commander had somehow avoided injury. At least the blast compartment had done its job…initially. The top was beginning to bow in though, pressing into Gabriel's back insistently as the weight of Overwatch settled on them both._

_"Take down Talon for me if you can?" A strained chuckle drifted up between them. "What am I talking about? Of course you can. It's you."_

_What? Gabe stared down in disbelief. Why the hell was Jack laughing at a time like this? Had the blast jarred something loose? "Jack, what are you-"_

_"Gabe. You need to get out of here while you can." Hands tightened around the collar of his hoodie. "You can smoke your way out of here. You might even be able to use that re-positioning trick you showed me a while back."_

_"I'm not leaving you here!" How dare he even suggest that?! Why the hell was Jack giving up?! Gabriel reached down to take hold of both sides of Jack's head, ready to shake some sense into him if need be. "You're coming with me, damnit. Don't-"_

_"I don't have your abilities. Gabriel, look at me." Fingers smoothed up the side of his jaw, stalling Gabe's thoughts momentarily. "The fact we're even getting to talk right now is enough."_

_"What the hell do you mean, 'it's enough'?! You're not going to-" die? Gabriel stared down at Jack in dismay, breath wheezing through what was left of his nose, blood dripping down onto Jack's stained Strike Commander armor. He felt rather than heard the desk creak above them, gaze and attention locked on the strange determination suddenly on Jack's face._

_Hands buried into his hoodie, Gabe's eyes flew wide as he was yanked down into a liplock that he'd spent nights dreaming of. No fake scenario could ever match the actuality of the first kiss though, Jack's mouth burning as it covered his own, hand pressing him in closer by the back of his neck._

_Oh. Hell. He couldn't- not here-_

_…Fuck it._

_Gabriel sank into the kiss, eyes drifting shut as he reeled Jack in and desperately returned the affection with every iota of his being. Oh god. It was so much better than he'd ever hoped it would be. Their faces shifted, blood finding its way between their lips and turning the taste of Jack's lips to iron. If he could just- Gabe near-shoved Jack down into the floor of the desk, tongue darting into the mouth below and barely keeping upright as Jack's tongue answered in kind, a full-body shudder rocking him to the core. God- Jack-_

_CRACK._

_No. What-_

_"Go." Jack gazed up at him, fear and a quiet acceptance taking hold of those familiar blue eyes. A hand was on Gabriel's head, fingers gently stroking across his scalp. "It's okay, Gabe. It's okay."_

_Okay?_

_OKAY?!_

_It wasn't fucking okay?! What the hell, Jack? Gabriel's mind whirred as it ran through every strategy he could think of, every one of them quickly crossed off until he was left with a single option. Leaving Jack here to die wasn't even considered- it was completely unthinkable. Gabriel would rather die than allow that to happen._

_…This might actually do the trick actually. Gabriel swallowed dryly as he considered the probability of his own demise before mentally accepting the consequences. Given how compromised he'd become, perhaps this was for the best honestly._

_Jack was going to make it. No matter what, Jack was going to make it out of here in one piece._

_The desk crunched above them, the metal warping inwards in a slow hourglass of twisted metal. It was now or never. Gabriel's arms wrapped around Jack carefully, face tucking in beside Jack's own. "Remember everything you are." If Jack could keep his mind on keeping himself together, that would make this even easier. A flash came back from before-_

_**Eliminate. Seal. Evac!** _

_-and Gabriel, teeth gritted, mentally flipped off the echoing voice in his head. "Find the truth. Don't trust anyone." He squeezed Jack tighter, breathing in the familiar sandalwood and closing his eyes in concentration, forcing himself to push away the memories of earlier. "Not even me."_

_If he'd had even a minute more, Gabe would have been able to explain the shift aloud- but as it was, even that time advantage was gone. The desk gave way, rubble pouring in on them, and Gabriel had just enough time to scream before he dissolved both himself and Jack to smoke. Keeping himself together was so much harder than before, the Commander forcing himself to keep calm as they worked towards the surface, smoke curling around girders and past too many bodies that he couldn't save-_

_The sun was blinding but an incredibly welcome sight as Gabriel seeped above the ceiling of debris. Now to get Jack-_

_Jack?_

_Shit- shit-_

_Jack was getting too lost in the nanites. Gabriel pulled, pulled, **PULLED** at the form within his own. Bit by bit, the familiar form began to reform before, every detail eased into place as Gabriel reformed his best friend from memory. Muscle memory from Jack's body helped him fit in the last few pieces, a sigh of relief overtaking him as he gazed down. He'd done it. Despite everything and everyone telling him contrary, side-along teleportation worked. It fucking worked! It- it-_

_Something was wrong._

_Oh-_

_Oh, he didn't- that didn't feel-_

_The smoke swayed back and forth in midair, Gabriel reforming on the ground of rubble below. The instant he solidified, pure agony shot through every cell. Lungs seized, heart hiccupping, and he couldn't feel his legs. He couldn't feel his legs._

_A shout sounded from far away, familiar blue eyes appearing above him. Jack! Look at him- he was okay. He was okay. "J-ck-"_

_"Stay awake, Gabe. Fuck- hold on! I've gotta- stay awake as long as you can! I'm going to get help- HOLD ON, damnit!"_

_Thudding noises sounded to his side, Gabriel reaching out fruitlessly towards the sound but left with the view of the sky above. It was the same color as Jack's eyes, he noted numbly. He could almost still taste Jack's lips on his. Sandalwood and spice, that little spike of hair in the back that Jack could never tame, the way his greying eyebrows wiggled after an especially bad joke, the look of concentration as Jack knocked down target after target at the range…. The chess games and the nights of almost-kisses and having each other's back day after week after month after year-_

_Yeah. Gabriel stared up at the sky, calm settling into his bones as the blue of Jack's eyes enveloped him, breath rattling to a stop within his aching chest. This was worth it._

_Jack would always be worth it._

\--

**2077**

**Gibraltar, Spain**

_Thud-thump._

_Thud-thump._

_Thud-thump._

Soft. Fingers twitched, the pads pressing down again. Soft…something. Fabric. Blanket?

The next inhale came faster, air stale and warm in his lungs. Eyelids stubbornly stayed shut, near-glued to his face until he could raise a hand to wipe at the crust there. Ugh.

Faint light filtered past lashes finally, moments stretching infinitely onwards. Each digit and limb finally found grounding, muscles re-aligning and nerves adjusting along the hum of nanites. Almost on instinct, the form shifted upwards, feet pressing down into the carpeted floor. Vertigo spun sight rapidly before settling, balance returning with a few wobbly steps. Muscle memory soon had him under a stream of water, the heat sliding through him as if he were made of Swiss cheese.

…Hey, wait. Had that been a Jack joke? …If so, it was in poor taste. Nose wrinkling, he methodically moved through his morning routine, pulling on clothes that just barely passed the sniff-test (laundry tomorrow) before padding out the door. Metal boots thudded sleepily, the growing light outside drawing him onward like moth to a flame until he found himself standing at the edge of one of the cliffs, blinking as the sun eased past the horizon, dawn sending skittering, sparkling colors along the waves. The sea breeze tickled what was left of his nose, the taste of salt lingering on his tongue as crimson eyes slowly opened, silently taking it all in as if for the first time.

It was only when a frantic thud of footsteps sounded behind him, the ground near-vibrating with the force, that he found his attention pulled away from the sun. Jack Morrison, hair ruffled beyond belief (ha- that little spike was still there) and dressed in only too-big pajama pants cinched in tightly about his waist and his combat boots, stared him down wide-eyed. 

Nerves overstimulated, body sore, and mind still reeling, Gabriel Reyes turned to face him. This was the man he'd sacrificed everything for, he knew now, and…as the brilliant morning sun illuminated them both, he silently admitted that it had been worth it, despite everything. 

"Hey."

 _"Hey?"_ Jack echoed back incredulously, but even he seemed to sense there was an odd sort of gravity to the moment. "…You're up."

Gabriel nodded, his head still feeling inordinately heavy. God, he could feel every tendon, every ligament- it was nearly too much. A familiar scent wafted his way, sandalwood appeasing his senses as he took a step forward. Every piece of his being felt like it was waking for the first time since Zurich's explosive end, every breath easing him back into what it felt like to truly exist, to truly _live_.

"Gabe, what the hell is going on?" Jack took a step in as well, as if expecting to need to catch Gabe, his movements cautious but sleep-tinged, exhaustion pulling at his voice.

…Gabriel swallowed, dry tongue against dry soft palate, the taste of Jack's mouth on his own lingering despite the years between them. He didn't yet know how he felt about it, despite knowing how he'd felt at the time. It had been a spur of the moment action between them both, leaving him floundering as to if he actually wanted it to happen again or if perhaps there was more to explore-

No. Another time. Right now, Jack deserved answers.

"You said-" His voice cracked, Gabe's tongue flickering out to wet his lips nervously. "-that when I was ready, we should talk." New memories fluttered by, Jack's face covered in birthday cake and chasing him with vengeful dessert in hand, training with the Strike Team in unbearable heat, plotting pranks with Ana in her sniper's nest as Torbjörn yelled at them from down below-

Gabriel took another step forward, steadying himself. The sun pounded at the back of his neck, urging as much as it soothed. He could do this.

"I'm ready."


	7. Chapter 7

"Well, I'm sure as hell not ready." Jack grumbled, arm craning back to absent-mindedly scratch at his frizzed bedhead. "Give a man a change to get dressed first, jerk."

Gabriel barely held in a snort. Right. A once-over swept the chest a mere two feet away, one of Gabe's eyebrows twitching higher and higher as he realized just how many new scars littered the skin. Sure, that one was from a gunshot- was that a knife wound? Perhaps shrapnel? Red eyes followed the canyons up across Jack's face, the tissue marred in a way he hadn't remembered seeing back in Zurich. Was he misremembering again? Hadn't he made sure Jack was fully formed before allowing himself to re-form?

A shuffle of boots in early morning gravel pulled Gabriel from his musings, the former Talon council member realizing that Jack had resorted to shifting uneasily rather than break the silence himself. Hm…

A gloved hand gestured to the bare torso in a half-wave. "Looks like you got a cat while I was gone."

The familiar blue eyes narrowed in confusion, flicking downwards- and landed on the marks littering his body. Two sets of scarred lips twitched. 

Gibraltar's morning air was split with laughter, boots thundering back towards the agent housing area as Jack chased his old friend. Twin grins (so wide their faces hurt with disuse) belied their near-murderous pace.

"See if I save you again after you call me a goddamn scratchpost, you old bastard-!" A pale hand swiped and finally connected, snagging beanie from salt-and-pepper head. Jack skidded to a halt triumphantly, ducking into his own room that they'd almost shot by in the goose chase. Gabriel made no effort to reclaim it, instead inwardly loving the way his breath was screaming in his lungs, cold razors lighting up his throat in a way that made his muscles sing with energy. How long had it been since they'd horsed around like this? Red met blue, both men panting but still managing smiles. …How long had it been since he'd seen Jack smile? _Really_ smile-?

"My room. Ten minutes." Gabe snickered as he watched Jack sputter.

"You'd better have coffee if you want your hat back."

"Two sugar, no cream, splash of whiskey?" Thank god for his returning memories. They were easing in now like the tide, shifting further and further back into place the longer he rummaged through them.

Jack rocked back on his heels, hand pressing the beanie into the doorframe as he gripped it for…stability? "Fifteen minutes. Make it three sugar." Even his voice seemed unsteady.

Fair. If this was hard for Gabriel, it had to be five times harder for Jack. Of the two of them, only one could remember everything. It was a damn miracle Jack had trusted him this far. "Yessir." He gave a half-salute, to which Jack rolled his eyes and shut the door.

\--

Feet slid out across the barely-carpeted floor, head sinking down into hands…into fabric. God, it _smelled_ like Gabe. It- it-

It felt too good to be true. That's really what it was, wasn't it? The false bravado sank into a puddle, Jack's upper body shaking relentlessly as he braced his legs against the ground for something solid to cling to. He didn't deserve the friendly banter, not after what he'd done. Not after he'd left him there, suffocating on his own blood and liquified internal organs-

No. No no no. If he went down that rabbit hole, he'd never come back out of it in time. Fifteen minutes. Damn it, Gabe knew it only took him thirty seconds to throw on a shirt and yet hadn't called out his bullshit. It was something the old Gabe would have done, would have known to do, to give him enough time to pull himself together.

…Maybe he should have asked for a little more whiskey in that coffee.

As it turned out, Jack needn't have asked. He was met at Gabriel's door with a steaming cup, the aroma alone snapping his eyes awake. A chuckle was quickly muffled as Jack threw the beanie at the smug face, trading for the cup as he slipped inside and took a long sip. Ohhh…was that…?

"There was caramel sauce in the fridge."

That explained it. Jack hummed contentedly, nerves forgotten momentarily. Damn it, Gabe. It really would have been easier if Gabe didn't know him so well or didn't care-

-care? The whiskey stung the back of his tongue as he swallowed his mouthful a bit too quickly. Jack cleared his throat roughly, lowering the cup as he took the chair the gloved hand motioned to, sitting perhaps a bit harder than he'd wanted to.

Gabriel took the bed, sitting on the edge sideways to face him. Again, silence darkened the space between them. Jack fought the urge to twitch. Was he going to be expected to ask all the questions? Sure, he had quite a few, but-

"How long was I out?"

Oh. "Two days." Jack carefully took another sip, braced himself, then dove in. "What the hell happened?" 

"You're going to need to be more specific." Came the dry response, sarcasm weaving through Gabriel's humor.

"I mean it, Gabe." The cup ground into the top of the desk, one hand splayed on top. "First, you're recovering from bullet wounds and then, the next time I see you, you're falling unconscious with no explanation? You were out cold for _two days._ " Zenyatta's back had been on the receiving end of several glares over the past forty-eight hours.

"He took an inhibitor out of my back."

The top of the cup cracked. _"What?"_ An inhibitor? What the hell had it been inhibiting? Pieces slotted together from Gabriel's rooftop comments to Echo- "A Talon inhibitor."

Gabriel's jaw clenched. "Yeah."

"This…has something to do with how they messed with you before." Mina's death, the possibility of unconsciously passing intel-

"Somewhat. It's still-" Gabe almost flinches. "My memory of everything before Zurich still isn't great, Jack. It's coming back in bits and pieces."

His _memory_? "And that's due to the inhibitor?"

"Zenyatta took it to Ziegler to fully figure out what they used it for. We were able to confirm it blocked my senses." Gloved hands reached for a tablet set haphazardly nearby, Gabriel flicking through a document that highlighted the odd splotches littering his skin before wordlessly handing it over. Patient history? Jack read through the first few entries…and quickly realized what he was reading. This was Talon's file, wasn't it? A quick look up at Gabe confirmed it. 

_Cancer?!_ Why hadn't- oh god, _memory test_ -

Jack's hands were shaking by the time the narrative reached Zurich, mind whirling. He set it down beside the cracked cup and shut the screen off, shuddering through a breath before turning back to the bed and its occupant. A calm, collected rage flooded his every cell, making his fists clench and his face grin madly.

"I'm going to destroy them." His eyes flick to the tablet, then back to Gabe, twin fires burning in the pale eyes. How DARE they violate Gabriel that way?! Finally, everything was beginning to make sense. "I am going to fucking _ruin them._ "

\--

He believed him. Jack's reaction was vindicating in a way, he realized, the same fiery anger responding in kind in his own chest. He was all burned out of the panic that had once gripped him. Now, Gabriel was left with resentful frustration…that Jack apparently now shared.

"Talon was always a scab." He grumbled back, looking away and barely registering the peeling wallpaper his eyes had fixed on at the ceiling's corner. "But the more I picked at it back in the day, the further they got under my skin. They're like an infection, rotting everything they touch from the inside out."

"There has to be a source. Gabe, in all the time you were there, did anything or anyone stand out as a source to it all?" Jack sounded angrier than he actually was- Gabe knew it from experience. Somehow.

"Talon isn't like Jenga, Jack." Gabriel huffed, crossing his arms tightly enough that he could feel the pressure through his hoodie. "There isn't a single block to be pulled that will bring down the whole tower. It has multiple resources, departments-"

"So what? We just have to find the right strategy to whittle away those resources and departments before it blows up in their faces!"

"It's not that easy!" He hissed back, irritation edging in. "Not everyone is there by choice." _Like I was,_ he thought bitterly.

"I happen to remember you found a way around that in the Crisis." Jack fired back. "The Command and Control protocol, remember?"

What? 'Command and Control'? Where the hell had he heard that before?

_**'I wish for you to discover a secret that they have tried to hide.'** The voice seemed almost soothing. Gabriel's hackles wanted to raise, they really did, but nothing about the voice seemed threatening at all. **'You were the one to discover how they control the omnic-kind.'**_

_"The command and control protocol." Now he was all ears. Gabriel turned, his back to the blinking hard drive._

_**'The very same. What if I were to tell you that those you call God AI run on a similar core processing unit?'** _

_What? But that would mean- "Something is controlling the God AI?" Gabriel hissed. "Or someone?"_

_**'Or somewhat.'** The voice appeared to agree, despite its odd wording._

The protocol…was used by hackers to take control of electronics. It hijacked the tech, forcing it to act against its original programming so that it might bend to the will of those seeking to control it. That's right. That…was what the God AIs had done to the scores of omnic troops. It was why they could live alongside the omnics in harmony after the Crisis…or at least in an uneasy alliance. And, in turn-

"God AIs may be, in turn, controlled by something else entirely." Gabe muttered under his breath. "It's all a damn onion of layers."

"God AIs WHAT?!"

Wait. Was Jack suggesting they turn that policy back on Talon? Gabriel's mind whirred, gears clicking into place. They had multiple command units, but there _was_ a hierarchy. Some moved differently than others, sure, but-

He'd used something back in the Crisis and even back in Blackwatch that tickled his mind in the same way. Moved differently...hierarchy. Jenga?

Gabriel dropped to his knees next to Jack, shoving the footlocker out away from his old friend and yanking it open. He'd seen it earlier, hadn't he? He could have sworn-

Ha! The old, battered chess set and two bags of players were pulled free, heaved up onto the bed before Gabriel himself joined them. Carefully, he moved the half-full coffee cup and the tablet back so that the board could fit on the surface, the checkered squares faded and smooth to the touch. If he could just figure out a way to use it the way he'd used to.... A movement beside him pulled Gabe's attention up again, only to be lost in wistful nostalgia that dotted his own mind and Jack's face. Absent-mindedly, his eyes followed the curves of the compression shirt Jack had pulled on. Good that he'd put that on, really. It was much less distracting-

"You want me to kick your ass again?" 

What? Gabe's head cocked to the side until he realized Jack was motioning to the board. He sputtered a laugh. "No. Not yet."

"This has something to do with the God AIs?"

"Kind of." Eh… "Not exactly."

"Wow Gabe." It was apparently Jack's turn to crank up the sarcasm, blue eyes rolling in amusement. "Quite the wordsmith."

"Pff. Shut up." The words failed to hold any heat whatsoever, Gabriel finally opening the bag. The pieces smelled old and…somehow like home. A hint of gunpowder, dirt, and old rationed snacks they'd tucked into while sneaking in a game on their off-hours-

They mechanically set up the field, sharing between bags like clockwork. Red first, then white pawns, King, Queen, rooks and bishops…until only one white knight remained. Two hands reached for it- and met halfway, both landing on top. An electric shock rocked them both at the touch. 

Double sets of lungs sucked in a breath, another few beats passing before they found themselves actively capable of letting go. But Gabriel couldn't help but stare at Jacks' hand for another moment, then up into those familiar eyes. Jack was close. He was so close and it would take nothing to begin again what they'd started in Zurich, wouldn't it? As if drawn in magnetically, both men find themselves leaning in, hot air tickling lips, both sets of gazes half-lidded-

_'SKKKK-tink-tink-tink-'_

The clatter sent them jumping apart, their movements sending further chess pieces to the floor. They stared at each other, a bit in shock, until Gabriel broke it with a quiet swear. Trying to cover his awkward fumbling, he leaned over and grabbed up the displaced game pieces, carefully putting them back in place.

Why had he almost done that? Jack didn't deserve to be blindsided by a sudden declaration of...whatever had happened in Zurich, especially right now. Gabriel berated himself for almost giving in to the temptation, eyes snapping to the chessboard before moving back to Jack.

Patience. After all, he'd woken in Gibraltar two weeks ago with the worst of bad intentions. Now…he was still working through some shit, sure, but Gabriel at least knew which side he wanted to be on. If he wanted anything to happen with Jack (did he?), then he first needed to make sure his head was back in place.

Gabriel carefully picked up the red King, twirling it between his fingers in thought. He'd used the chess board in the past to strategize, sure. But…hadn't the pieces been used to block certain troop movements and locations during the Crisis? Adapting it for Talon would require a bit more finesse. The pieces would need to be based more on individuals and perhaps even the corporations they represented-

The movement of the King in his fingers stalled, a sudden light bulb going off as if hovering above his head. If he could assign names to each of the players, based on their abilities-

-well, sure. He couldn't exactly treat it like a normal chess game though, could he? There would have to be special exceptions to account for certain situations, changes of players-

"Gabe?" Jack asked quietly, sounding almost sad.

…What? Gabriel set the king firmly down in the middle of the board, hiding a wince at the other man's expression. Jack looked nearly forlorn, fidgeting across from him. And why wouldn't he be-? Talon had fucked them all sideways from day one.

"We're going to take Talon apart piece by piece." He growled confidently, holding eye contact. "They are going to pay for messing with us, for messing with our _family._ We'll dismantle the whole damn thing from under their nose."

"And how, pray tell, are we going to pull that off?" Much to Gabriel's relief, the sad look receded to just Jack's eyes, telling him that it would be brought up another time but…not now. Jack wanted to apparently focus on something else. Well…hell. Gabe could provide that.

"You're right. I know their tactics. I know who the heads are and how they're placed." He began mentally assigning names. Moira. Doomfist. PETRAS. "They'll never know what hit them." With a flick of his index finger, the red king tipped over. A soft whir sounded as it rolled to and fro above the checkered squares. 

"We're going to beat them at their own game, Jackie." Gabriel proclaimed, eyes wild as the gears began to turn, a sinister grin pulling from missing ear to ear and shadowy smoke twisting above his shoulders. "They'll never know what hit them."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Look for part four, 'The Devil Within', soon-!
> 
> One question: do you happen to have a chess board? >:)


End file.
